The New Ideal Diner

A Desegregated Diner on Route 40

By HCRP staff
The New Ideal Diner had already desegregated in agreement with CORE before the December, 1961 Freedom Ride on Route 40.

The New Ideal Diner existed in downtown Aberdeen, Maryland in 1961 and into the 21st century. In 1961, it was listed as the "Ideal" restaurant in the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) brochure for Freedom Riders and listed as "Desegregated". Therefore, it probably kept its agreement reached with CORE earlier in 1961. It was not a Freedom Ride destination scheduled for December 16, 1961 although it was probably tested for its racial policies by CORE activists in the weeks before.

The iconic diner building still exists in Aberdeen. In 2021 it operated as a fresh seafood market.

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104 South Philadelphia Boulevard (Pulaski Highway), Aberdeen, Maryland 21001 ~ The New Ideal building is two blocks west from Bel Air Avenue and Route 40 in Aberdeen. It is on the left side of Route 40, on the service road between Custis and Market streets.

Cite this Page

HCRP staff, “The New Ideal Diner,” Harford Civil Rights Project, accessed April 19, 2024, https://harfordcivilrights.org/items/show/21.

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Published on Sep 29, 2021. Last updated on Oct 22, 2022.