a mosque, also called masjid in arabic, is defined as any place that muslims pray facing mecca, not necessarily a building. by that meaning, there were mosques in the united states by 1731 or earlier. job ben solomon (1701–1773), an african-american muslim kidnapped into slavery, was documented by his slave narrative memoir to have prayed in the forest of kent island, maryland, where he was brought during 1731–33.