Sidney Sakols (November 23, 1916 – July 22, 2007) was a real estate executive,

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

veteran, composer, inventor, activist, and eccentric

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

native.

Biography

Sidney's family lived on North Broadway in East

when he was born in 1916, but they moved to Lake Drive in

Reservoir Hill Reservoir Hill is a historic neighborhood in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It is located south of Druid Hill Park, north of Bolton Hill, east of Penn-North, and west of Jones Falls. It is bounded by Druid Park Lake Drive, ...

in 1922. Sidney resided there until he died in 2007. During his time there the neighborhood's demographics shifted to being predominantly

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

. He graduated from

Baltimore City College Baltimore City College, known colloquially as City, City College, and B.C.C., is a college preparatory school with a classical liberal arts focus and selective admissions criteria located in Baltimore, Maryland. Opened in October 1839, B.C.C ...

in 1935 and promptly began working for the family real estate business, S. Sakols & Sons. The company managed 25–30 properties, most of them in East Baltimore. Beginning in 1940, he served in the army for four and a half years, reaching the rank of

master sergeant A master sergeant is the military rank for a senior non-commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries. Israel Defense Forces The (abbreviated "", master sergeant) is a non-commissioned officer () rank in the Israel Defense Force ...

. However, he did not find the work he did for the army very fulfilling and stuck to the real-estate business thereafter. Sakols filed a lawsuit against Baltimore Transit Co. for overcrowded buses in 1950, but he lost his case. He twice ran unsuccessfully for

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

, once in 1958 for the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and then again in 1968 for the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

. Sakols founded the Save Lake Drive Committee in response to the construction of the

Jones Falls Expressway Interstate 83 (I-83) is an Interstate Highway located in the states of Maryland and Pennsylvania in the Eastern United States. Its southern terminus is at a signalized intersection with Fayette Street in Baltimore, Maryland; its northern ...

and the widening of Lake Drive that resulted from construction. In one demonstration, he managed to personally halt the construction, though only temporarily. Sakols sang in the Baltimore Symphony Chorus and composed a song entitled "The Governor's March". According to his nephew, David M. Schimmel, "It was recorded by the Naval Academy Band and it was played for the inaugurations of Governors Tawes and McKeldin. But the song, much to his dismay, never became a regular part of the inauguration." Also an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

enthusiast, Sakols invented an “Illuminating Magnifying Lens” for reading

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

without disturbing other attendees of the opera. Sakols was a Conservative Jew and belonged to the

Chizuk Amuno Congregation Chizuk Amuno Congregation () is a Conservative Judaism, Conservative Judaism, Jewish congregation and synagogue, located on Stevenson Road, in Pikesville, Maryland, Pikesville, a suburb of Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States. Principles ...

. He remained a member of the congregation throughout his life, even after the congregation moved out to the Baltimore suburbs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sakols, Sidney American businesspeople in real estate 20th-century American Jews Businesspeople from Baltimore 1916 births 2007 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 21st-century American Jews