Stump the German

[L Verge]

Mencken was a native of Baltimore and lived there - in the same house - all of his life (I think). It still stands and is a great example of the Baltimore row houses of the 19th century with the pristine white marble entry steps.

However, when Mencken died in the mid-1950s, the house was given to the University of Maryland. It was later swapped to the city and incorporated into Baltimore's City Life Museums. That group disbanded for economic reasons, and so far as I know, the Mencken house now stands empty and is deteriorating while the city tries to find a civic group to save it.

Since H.L. Mencken worked for the Baltimore Sun, which still is in existence, it's a shame the Sun doesn't figure out a way to protect it. However, newspapers today need a little protection from extinction themselves.