Black Home Owners of Truxton Circle: Morgan H. Dawkins- 109 P St NW

This is just another blog post about an everyday African American home owner in Truxton Circle.  So let us go back 100 years to the 1920 census to find a couple, husband and wife, who own their home.

photo of property

Morgan Henry Dawkins was born on March 31, 1886 in Shelton, SC to Henry and Lucy Dawkins. In 1900, he was living with his sister and brother in law in South Carolina. He married Carrie I. Cooke, daughter of Henry and Lavinia Cooke in Richmond, Virginia in 1908. In the 1910 census where Morgan is “Morris” the Dawkins family (Morgan Sr, Jr. and Carrie) lived at 626 3rd St NW in Washington, DC. Morgan Sr was a porter for the railroad. When he had to register for WWI’s draft around 1917/1918, the family had moved to 109 P St NW. By World War II, Morgan Sr. was working as a driver for Dupont Laundry (2335 Sherman Ave NW). Then Morgan Sr. died in 1946.

The earliest record from the DC Recorder of Deeds (1921-2021) is a trust from April 1928 for Morgan H. and Carrie C. Dawkins. They were advanced $1,100 worth of shares from the Washington Loan and Trust Company. What the heck that means? Don’t know. I’m guessing they borrowed $1,100.  This debt was paid or released in 1936. Later that month the Dawkins paid off a March 1918 debt with a release.

In a 1936 trust with the Washington Loan and Trust Company reported the death of Carrie C. Dawkins on May 20, 1933. In that same document, widower Morgan H. Dawkins borrowed 2,300.

In 1939 he borrowed a small amount of money from individual trustees. It was $180.00 at 6% interest.

In 1947, funeral director Morgan H. Dawkins Jr and his wife Ora (formerly Ora Felice Edwards) of Newport News, VA sold the property to Flonnie M. Foster. Ms, Foster then sold it to Mary B. Lee later that same year.

Note the Washington Loan and Trust Company debts are signed off by the Equitable Co-Operative Building Association. What does this mean? No clue. Just wanted to mention it. I hope in time the more I look at these documents, that I’ll figure it out.