Jack's Garage
Despite the change of ownership between 1921 and 1947, the garage remained known as Jack's Garage on Wilson Street until it was sold by William Lloyd Adams and Chandler V. Wynne to the Trustees of Muhammad's Holy Temple of Island No. 6 Inc. in 1959. The building continues to be used as a Black Muslim mosque.
Known Name(s)
Jack's
Address
514 Wilson Street Baltimore, Maryland
Establishment Type(s)
Garage
Physical Status
Extant
Description
The garage that is listed in the Green Book at 514 Wilson Street (now Islamic Way) is a two-story structure that faces south, and the 514 portion is the east (or right) half of the building. It is of brick laid in common bond, and the façade is painted while the east and west elevations have been covered in stucco and painted. The east elevation has three two-over-two windows in the first and second stories, and the first floor windows have been painted over. The south façade has been altered so that it has three entrances. In the center bay, unpainted brick marked by arches contain two recessed entrances with glass doors and glass sidelights. The entrances are marked as “Brothers Entrance” and “Sisters Entrance” since the building is divided for services for only women or men. The second story has been covered over with vinyl siding and the cornice has been boxed. The lower brick façade has been painted. A third door in the second east bay is a paneled metal example with a single oval light with a second security metal frame door. A two-light rectangular window is in the first east bay. On the west elevation, there are 5 windows in the second story, but no windows appear in the first floor.
Detailed History
514 Wilson Street was originally a livery stable with carriages, although by 1914, the building had two separate addresses with the west side numbered 516, as drawn on the Sanborn Insurance Company Map #206 for 1915. The west side contained a brick wall elevator that gave access to the second story. The garage business came under the control of Chandler V. Wynne in 1938, who was described in a June 1942 Afro American article as “the owner of an auto repair shop” as well as a filling station on the southeast corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Mosher Street. Between 1939 and 1947, the Green Book’s listing identified the garage as “Jack’s Garage.” Wynne ran the auto repair shop and used the second story as a parking garage, while the building was owned by Jack Gargare and other members of his family between 1921 and 1946. Wynne and William Lloyd Adams purchased the building along with the ground rent in 1946 and sold it to a Black Muslim congregation in 1959. Chandler Wynne was one of Willie Adams' close associates and he went on to run Carr's Beach after Adams purchased it in 1951. Now the location of the Masjid ul Haqq Inc. Mosque.
