Historic Fells Point Trail: Fell Family Tomb

Be Here Stories

This tour of Fells Point Historic Trail is created by The Baltimore National Heritage Area (BNHA), which promotes, preserves, and enhances Baltimore's historic and cultural legacy and natural resources for current and future generations. A walking tour of this and other destinations is available at www.explorebaltimore.org/tours. Located at 1607 Shakespeare Street Transcript: This small, somewhat spooky cemetery plot between two houses is the Fell family tomb. The Fells were instrumental in establishing Fells Point as a commercial and maritime center. There are several generations of Fell men memorialized on the stone, beginning with Edward Fell. Edward was the first of the Fell family to come to the New World from Europe. He was a merchant who imported goods and had a well respected store over near Jonestown. He is not actually buried in this tomb because he died in his native England, but is remembered here. Edward's brother, William, was a Quaker who came to this area around 1730 and began acquiring land. He eventually amassed 1100 acres and became the commissioner for Baltimore Town. He died in 1746 and lies in the tomb. William's son, Colonel Edward Fell, is also buried here. After his father died and he inherited the 1100 acres of land, he sold or leased the land. It is then that Fells Point really began to take shape. He died when he was just 33, possibly because of tuberculosis. The colonel's son, William, also died at a young age. He was only 27 when he was buried here. Historians suspect he also died from tuberculosis. You might be wondering why these men's wives are not memorialized at this tomb. Since some of the Fells died at an early age, like the Colonel and William, their wives remarried and carried on after their deaths. No one knows for sure where the women are buried.