In the historically largest African American community in Baltimore County, 10,000 people once lived and worked at one of the largest steel producers in the world.
Now, with the relocation of major employers, Turner Station has a population of around 3,000.
The people who remain are now fighting to keep the history alive — and their neighborhood above water.
“Yes, back in the 60s, we were a vibrant community, self-sustained,” Gloria Nelson said. “Didn’t have to leave out of the community for anything because we had a wealth in our own community, anywhere from multiple doctors, a drug store, the schools, library, convenience stores, you name it.”
But the community faces environmental issues. Turner Station sits at sea level. When it rains, it floods.
The government only recently stepped in with a proposed action plan. The local and state governments allocated $3.15 million in federal funds towards flood prevention projects to help keep the town afloat.
“That’s where the Dollar Tree is. That’s this,” Mandy Breedlove said while pointing at a historic map of Dundalk. A Dollar Tree sits on the main crossroads where Turner Station began in 1888.
Breedlove continued, “It was seven log cabins here, outhouses and stuff. There were five Black families, two white families.”
“The community grew because people migrated from the south,” Breedlove said. “Bethlehem Steel needed workers.”
During the industrial age, Black people came from farms in places like South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia to work at Bethlehem Steel, according to Breedlove.
Along with that, people moved to the community to work at General Motors and Western Electric. At least one person in every household worked in one of these three industries, according to Nelson.
A longtime Turner Station resident, Breedlove is the co-chair of the history center located in Sollers Point Multipurpose Center in Dundalk.
According to Breedlove, the community is named after J.M. Turner, a businessman who owned the land that a passenger freight station was built. The train station was popular for people travelling into the town for work.
As the community grew to include homes, stores and companies, the neighborhood took on the same name, according to the history center’s website.
The town became home to many influential figures, including Kevin Clash, the former voice of Elmo; Henrietta Lacks, the source of the first immortal cell line; civil rights leader and U.S. Rep. Kweisi Mfume; former NFL player Calvin Hill; and former NBA player Rudy Gay, according to the Turner Station History Center.
Now with General Motors and Western Electric relocated and Bethlehem Steel closed, the population decreased because of people moving for new employment opportunities, Nelson said.
Residents who lived in the community have suffered from many respiratory issues, high rates of cancer, emphysema and asbestos from industry work, along with worsening flooding issues.
Before the $3.15 million grant, the government paid for two studies to be done about the flooding, but no action was taken to address the problem.
“The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because it will decrease flooding,” Mfume said in his request for the funding to Congress.
Mfume said in the announcement that the money will “increase quality of life, reduce property damage, protect transportation and other safety systems, uplift economic activity, create jobs and other measurable outcomes.”
Nelson, who’s lived in the community most of her life and is president of the conservation team, believes the flood prevention plan is only the start of change.
“This $3.15 million finally gets us money to start with the implementation,” Nelson said. “We still need three times as much additional money to really get the project going. But this is a start, and this is more than we have ever had, that I can recall.”
Many roads in Turner Station don’t meet roadway drainage criteria. Flooding has caused damage to property and water tanks in community members’ basements. The cost of fixing the property damage is expensive for many residents who are of a lower income. Cars during severe flooding sit on top of water.
“When I grew up in the community, flooding existed,” Nelson said. “However, it wasn’t at the level that it is now.”
According to Nelson, when the Baltimore transit buses use the roadways during floods, it further pushes the water into people’s homes. County and local police have to block off the roadways to prevent car damage.
“Folks have lost their vehicles because they were not moved or they were not aware that it was going to flood, or did not anticipate, I should say, the flooding that exists,” Nelson said.
Mold from water entering homes, vehicle loss and property damage is costly.
The funding is going towards the first phase of the flood mitigation projects: construction.
“The roadmap addresses flooding and improves drainage problems in a MDE [Maryland Department of the Environment] environmental justice priority community,” the initiative reads. “These major improvements increase quality of life, reduce property damage, protect transportation and safety systems and uplift economic activity.”
The project is estimated to cost $12.5 million, with money coming from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Legislative Pre-Disaster Mitigation fund and the Maryland Department of Emergency Management, with more funds needing to be raised.
The design stage started in April 2024 and will finish in February 2028. When construction will start is still to be determined. This first phase will target the intersection of Sollers Point Road and Oak Street, according to Mfume.
“We don’t want to be a forgotten community; we want to continue to be known as a strong community,” Nelson said.
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