7602 Main Street
7602 Main Street, Sykesville, Tidal Salt is the orange building with white doors. (Photo by Gate House Staff, 2025)
The McDonald Lot
History
7602 is part of the section of Town known as “The McDonald Block.” The original structure at this site was built in 1878. The site housed a pool hall on the first floor run by Frank Barns from the 1920s into the 1930s, with his family living on the upper floors. Mame Barnes (Frank's widow) continued to live in the upper apartment after the 1937 fire that destroyed the original building.
The structure was immediately rebuilding, after which the downstairs was occupied for several decades by Wilbur Wimmer's Plumbing. More recently, the site has hosted a leather goods store, a country store, and currently Tidal Salt on Main.
See the photos below to learn more!
Architectural Details
(Awaiting from SHDC)
The frame structure includes domes windows with colored-glass transoms.
1913 Postcard--Main Street
In this photo postcard, 7604 is difficult to see, but in the middle of the block, the second to last storefront before the taller brick building (Photo ID: 3453a GHM)
1972
View of Main Street, Sykesville showing 7602 (left) and 7600 (right). Photograph taken August 1972. Unattributed.
1983
Betty's Country Shop
(photo: gift of Thelma Wimmer 2024.015.006)
1937 Fire
Thought to have started as a chimney fire, on October 21, 1937 four businesses with homes above them, and the physician’s office of Dr. H.L. Barnes were completely destroyed. Windy weather and a broken fire hose access at Sykesville Station required firefighters to pump water 500 feet down the street directly from the South Branch of the Patapsco River.
Evelyn “Puzz” (Barnes) Brightwell lived in 7606 Main Street at the time of the fire, when she was a fifth grader, and in 1996 recounted the events surrounding the fire vividly:
"My mother said she remembered seeing the front of the building that housed our apartment and my father’s pool hall, crumble down and our furniture falling with it. We lost everything. I remember that a day before I had won a set of triangular dishes at the movie theater. I never even got to unpack them."
Oral History collected by Errol G. Smith, 1996
1996
Craftsman Art Company, a framing company operated in this space.
(photo taken by R. Berry, 1996, GHM 2024.018.037)
1911 Sanborn Fire Map
This excerpt from the full map shows a barber shop and pool hall located at location 104 (the equivalent of 7602 Main Street) at this time.
1924 Sanborn Fire Map
In this fire map excerpt, 7602 is listed as location 104, listed simply as a shop ("S").
c. 1920s
This image shows the back of the McDonald Block,
2025
Photograph of 7602 taken by Gate House staff, April 2025.
Site Use
Research is ongoing to confirm the historical use of this property. If you see any errors or have additional information, please contact the Museum through the methods at the bottom of the page
--Updated with SDAT and Deed information May 2026--
Note: SDAT incorrectly lists the main structure's construction as 1878. The structure entirely burned down in 1937, after which a new structure replaced the original.
Confirmed Use as of May 26, 2026
Former building at this site:
1878: the McDonald block, including this address, is constructed by John McDonald.
1908: The First National Bank owns this property, purchased from Kate McDonald, and operates a bank next door at 7600 Main (Maryland Land Records Liber DPS 110, folio 198)
1911: The Sanborn fire map (see above) shows a pool hall and barber shop located at this storefront.
1920: Wade H.D. Warfield buys this property (7602 Main) which at the time was part of the land belonging to the Old Bank building next door (7600 Main Street) (Maryland Land Records, Liber EOC 135, folio 392, MSA 56-123)
1924: The Sanborn fire map shows a shop (no description) at this storefront. (see above)
1927 through 1930s: Pool Hall run by Frank Barnes; Barnes' family lived in second floor apartment ("Sykesville Past and Present A Walking Tour," Greenberg, 2012) Frank and Mamie Barnes purchase the property from Wade H.D. Warfield and his wife Ellen M. Warfield (through Edward Weant and Harry Phelps [Trustees]) after the Warfields' insolvency begins to be processed (Maryland Land Records, Liber EMM 149, folio 96; folio 566)
1936: Wimmer Plumbing, run by Wilbur Wimmer (d. 1979), (Sykesville Buseiness Records; oral history of Thelma Wimmer [1970])
1937: original building is destroyed by fire
Current building:
1938: Property conveys jointly from Helen J. Haifley (single), to Mame Barnes and Bertha T. Hatfield as joint tenants (Maryladn Land Records, Liber LDM 168, folio 96)
c. 1938-1970: Structure is rebuilt and resumes use as Wimmer Plumbing on the main floor, with Mamie Barnes occupying the above apartment. (see above). In 1942, Wilbur Wimmer purchases the property from Bertha T. Hatfield (Maryland Land Records Liber EAS 179, folio 340), and an alley at the back of the property purchased by Wilbur Wimmer from Cora Gaither in 1943 (Maryland Land Records, Liber EAS 181, folio 312).
1980-1983: Betty's Country Store--antiques, collectibles and glassware (Carroll County Times, Nov. 3, 1980, p. A4--advertisement lists as "opening Nov. 8"); "Sykesville Past and Present," Barrow, 1987)
1982: Thelma Wimmer (wife of Wilbur Wimmer [deceased 1979]) deeds the property to Jon E. Wimmer (Maryland Land Records, liber 804, folio 310)
1989-1997: Craftsman Art Company Inc., custom framing and art gallery co-owned by Mark Rychwalski and Wiley Purkey (Carroll County Times, May 20, 1989, p. A2; Carroll County Times, Aug. 31, 1997, p. A6) In 1993, a car did substantial damage to the historic storefront (Carroll County Times, March 28, 1993, p. A7)
1998: Wiley Purkey sells the property to Sykesville Main Street LLC
2010: Jon E. Wimmer sells the property to Wiley Purkey (SDAT)
2012: In-Step Leather, motorcycle goods ("Sykesville Past and Present A Walking Tour," Greenberg, 2012) at the time, it also occupied 7604 Main Street..
2014-2020: Wind River Clothing and Gifts occupies this space.
2021-present: Tidal Salt on Main, a gift store featuring locally-made and woman-made products, opened under the ownership of Jenn Banks (opened April 17, 2021, as per owner).