This Week in History: Lafayette Market Groundbreaking, October 7, 1955
Now known as the #AvenueMarket
#BlackArtsAndEntertainmentDistrict
Groundbreaking for the Lafayette Market, October 7, 1955, 65 years ago this week. The former market, which opened in 1871, had been destroyed by fire in 1953.
African American City Councilman Walter T. Dixon is standing at the microphone. City Councilman Solomon Liss is second from the right in the dark suit. The other men are unidentified.
As a young child, I happily walked from my nearby residence in #Sandtown with my beloved Nanny Jack to the former Lafayette Market.
1) Photograph of October 7, 1955 ground breaking ceremony. Photographed by Clinton's Studio, 1506 Pennsylvania Avenue, Baltimore MD. Signed by City Councilman Walter T. Dixon.
2) Lafayette Market Bronze Tablet. This is the 1955 original tablet from the old building. #MayorThomasDalesandro, Jr. and #GeorgeCarter, director of the #DepartmentofPublicWorks are listed on the tablet.
3) 1875 receipt for repairs to #LafayetteMarketHouse. The $150 repairs in 1875 are equivalent to over $3,500 in 2020.
This is a sampling of a larger Lafayette Market collection.
#NegroHistoryDetective 🕵🏽♂️
Courtesy of Nanny Jack & Co Archives