James Myer Blake II, a lifelong Mount Washington resident and retired state building inspector, died Monday of prostate cancer in the house on Walnut Road in which he was born. He was 74.
Mr. Blake's father, Bradford E. Blake, bought the house in 1917 from a cousin's family that had owned it for several decades. Family members said the house was built in the early 1830s.
"The house has his name written all over it," said Nancy Goode Blake, Mr. Blake's wife of 17 years. "Every room has his little touches, from woodwork to door frames. He's done a tremendous amount of work on the house."
Among his more ambitious projects was converting a crawl space into a full-scale basement. "He really had the capability to do almost anything," said his brother, Bradford E. Blake Jr. of Baltimore.
Mr. Blake and his wife spent many evenings and weekends tending to the home's famed garden, which neighbors referred to as the "Sherwood Gardens of Mount Washington." The couple also kept a vegetable garden outside Valley Presbyterian Church on Joppa Road in Lutherville for about 15 years. Mr. Blake taught his wife how to can, and the two canned applesauce, corn and other fruits and vegetables.
"That is where I expect I'll find my greatest solace, in the gardens," Mrs. Blake said. "We spent so much time together there."
A lifelong member of Mount Washington Presbyterian Church/Valley Presbyterian Church, Mr. Blake sang bass in the choir for more than 50 years. He also served as Sunday school superintendent, deacon, elder and elder emeritus.
Fellow churchgoers will remember Mr. Blake as a "very direct man who spoke his mind and had firm convictions and who loved people," Mrs. Blake said.
Mr. Blake retired in 1992 from his job with the state.
A memorial service will be held for Mr. Blake at noon Sept. 8 at Valley Presbyterian Church, 2200 W. Joppa Road, Lutherville. Burial is at Druid Ridge Cemetery.
He also is survived by a sister, Mary Elizabeth Farlow of Baltimore; nine nieces; and six nephews.
