Picture This: A Glimpse Into Catonsville’s Storied Past

John Sanford Wilson, founder of the lumber company that bears his name, died on April 11, 1902, of a stroke. His demise warranted a lengthy obituary in The Sun. He was born in Baltimore on Feb. 9, 1846, and was of Revolutionary stock. His obituary stated: “His great-grandfather, John Wilson, participated in the struggle for American independence.”

Following the death of his father in 1854, John Wilson went to live with his grandparents on a farm near Catonsville. Originally working as a farmer, business pursuits captured his attention when he moved to Catonsville in 1880.

In addition to his business acumen, he served as a School Commissioner of Baltimore County and, subsequently, president of the board. “In his public career he displayed the same eminent qualities which distinguished his private and business life, doing much to advance the educational interests of the county.” 

An article in the Catonsville Times on Sept. 18, 1969, that described the improvements the firm was making, told of its origins: “The John S. Wilson Company was started as a grocery business at the northwest corner of Frederick Road and Ingleside Avenue in 1881 by John Sanford Wilson. On June 1, 1885, he opened a lumber and coal business at 741 Frederick Road, which was known as Wilson & Poehlmann. In December 1887, he sold the grocery business to Charles Fusting, and concentrated on the lumber business, which has continued through the years as the John S. Wilson Co., where building materials are sold.”

This photo predates a renovation in the late 1940s, which created a new storefront of brick and glass plate, and a covering of barn red shingles. At this point, the store still maintained the high sign covering the gable and the front overhang, which was a common architectural style of store properties in the 1880s.

An April 1949 newspaper advertisement boasted of the company’s improvements. “Today the same store [built in 1885] is new, modernistic, truly 1949! Our 61/2-acre yard boasts the only railroad in town, Catonsville Short Line. Three modern trucks make deliveries. Nine employees are here to serve you from our good stock of lumber, high grade coal, hardware, paints and our new line of kitchen and household appliances.” 

The lumber company was located on this site since 1885 and was s finally razed in 1969 when the company moved into the former Food Fair store next door (visible in right of photo). By this point, the Food Fair had been vacant for four years and was considered an eyesore.

In 1969, there were a number of businesses along Frederick Road getting facelifts, according to the newspaper report. However, John S. Wilson was named the singular winner in the 1968­–69 Business for Beauty program, co-sponsored by the General Federation of Women’s Clubs and Cities Service Oil Company.

At a Washington, D.C., ceremony on Sept. 9, “the company president, Charles O’Donnell, was recognized as the businessman who had improved a business place to the greatest extent above 2,500 other improvement projects completed in the United States.” The Woman’s Club of Catonsville and the Rolling Hills Woman’s Club co-sponsored the entry in the competition.

Today, the Wilson Lumber Company is located in Howard County. Its website makes note of its Catonsville roots and includes a historical photo of the original building.

Its motto: “Your Great Grandfather was a satisfied customer.”

Thanks go to Bryce Rumbles, librarian at the Catonsville Branch, and Lisa Vicari, Catonsville Room volunteer and board member, Friends of the Catonsville Library, for their research assistance.