September 12, 2025 (Saturday)
Enoch Pratt Free Library, 400 Cathederal St
Mencken Day Eve — Friday, September 11
06:00PM An open house featuring a casual piano performance and an informal presentation on H.L. Mencken’s place in the Jazz Age social scene is planned for 6-8:30 p.m. Sept. 11th at the H. L. Mencken House, 1524 Hollins Street in Baltimore’s Union Square neighborhood.
Music Director Carter McMullen will be playing selections on H.L. Mencken’s piano. There will also be a brief presentation on Mencken’s place in Jazz Age culture.
Saturday, September 12, 2026
10:30 AM Annual Meeting of The Mencken Society at the Wheeler Auditorium. Presentations will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Mencken Society’s founding and the one hundredth anniversary of the “Hatrack Controversy” which led to Mencken and The American Mercury being banned in Boston.
2:00 PM The Mencken Day Lecture. Andrew Holter will speak about Murray Kempton, who followed in Mencken’s footsteps as a columnist, Baltimore journalism, and Mencken’s legacy. A native of Frederick, Maryland, Holter is a writer and researcher who now lives in Chicago, has written for The Times Literary Supplement, Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Review of Books, The Brooklyn Rail, and Lapham’s Quarterly. Mr Holter edited Going Around: Selected Journalism, a collection of Murray Kempton’s writings.
Saturday Night Club
14 West Hamilton St, Baltimore
Admission includes a German-themed dinner and two drinks followed by a conversation with the Mencken Day speaker Andrew Holter.
6:00 PM Doors open. Please do not arrive early.
7:00 PM Dinner buffet.
Checks for $65 per person should be made out to “The Mencken Society” and mailed to The Saturday Night Club, c/o Mr Raymond King, 14 W. Hamilton St, Baltimore, MD 21201-5008.