Flag House Courts
Encyclopedia
Flag House Courts was a public housing
project located in Baltimore, Maryland. Comprising three 12-story buildings, and multiple low-rise
units. Flag House was built in 1955. The project had recreational facilities with bingo
and dances, a swimming pool, and a basketball court. However, the complex had problems from its opening. Elevators broke down often, trapping riders for hours. Residents were forced to run fans (even during winter) because a faulty heating system made the buildings unbearably hot. In addition, there were the problems of crime and drug dealing. By the late 1960s, gunshots were very common, elevators and the stairwells reeked of urine. Residents often threw objects out of windows including holiday Christmas trees. Vacant apartments were turned into drug hangouts, and stairwells became violent crime areas.
In 1993, the projects were renovated slightly, but problems continued. They closed in 1998 and 1999 and were imploded in 2001.
Flag House is mentioned briefly in The Wire
. Officer Ellis Carver
tells Bodie Broadus
in season one, episode five ('the pager'), that he was brought up on the Flag House Courts project.
Public housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is owned by a government authority, which may be central or local. Social housing is an umbrella term referring to rental housing which may be owned and managed by the state, by non-profit organizations, or by a combination of the...
project located in Baltimore, Maryland. Comprising three 12-story buildings, and multiple low-rise
Low-rise
A low-rise is a building that is only a few stories tall.There is no universally accepted height requirement for a building to be considered a low-rise...
units. Flag House was built in 1955. The project had recreational facilities with bingo
Bingo (US)
Bingo is a game of chance played with randomly drawn numbers which players match against numbers that have been pre-printed on 5x5 matrices. The matrices may be printed on paper, card stock or electronically represented and are referred to as cards. Many versions conclude the game when the first...
and dances, a swimming pool, and a basketball court. However, the complex had problems from its opening. Elevators broke down often, trapping riders for hours. Residents were forced to run fans (even during winter) because a faulty heating system made the buildings unbearably hot. In addition, there were the problems of crime and drug dealing. By the late 1960s, gunshots were very common, elevators and the stairwells reeked of urine. Residents often threw objects out of windows including holiday Christmas trees. Vacant apartments were turned into drug hangouts, and stairwells became violent crime areas.
In 1993, the projects were renovated slightly, but problems continued. They closed in 1998 and 1999 and were imploded in 2001.
Flag House is mentioned briefly in The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
. Officer Ellis Carver
Ellis Carver
Ellis Carver is a fictional character on the HBO drama The Wire, played by actor Seth Gilliam. Carver is an African American lieutenant and formerly in command of the Baltimore Police Department's Western District Drug Enforcement Unit...
tells Bodie Broadus
Bodie Broadus
Preston "Bodie" Broadus is a fictional character on the HBO drama The Wire, played by actor J. D. Williams. Bodie is initially a Barksdale organization drug dealer in "The Pit" who slowly rises through the ranks...
in season one, episode five ('the pager'), that he was brought up on the Flag House Courts project.