Truxton Is In Shaw

I found an earlier post when the house was up for sale in 2005. Also this property was at one time owned by the Broadus family until they lost it in 1927.

January 1948, Olinian A Hollaway purchased 1611 New Jersey Avenue NW from Percy and wife, Valentine Waddill. Mr. Hollaway took on a $4,500 debt with trustees at 6% interest, and paid it off in September 1964 when he and his wife, Natalie, sold the house to Collier & Vogel Inc.

Usually for every trust/ mortgage there is a release noting the end of the debt. Sometimes when I don’t locate the corresponding release or trust, it is usually something that got lost with fat fingers or bad OCR. I had a release for the Hollaways and did not see an obvious trust. After they sold in July 1964, there were two releases. The first, from September 17, 1964 paid off a 1948 $5,000 trust between the Waddills and the Perpetual Building Association. Olinian’s name doesn’t show up anywhere in the original document. However, the document was part of the January 1948 sale.

Since Olinian is such an unusual name, it was fairly easy to look up his history. When we first find Olinian in the 1950 census on New Jersey Ave NW, he is a clerk working for the city post office. His wife Natalie was a stay at home mom caring for their, then 9 year old, daughter Janice. They lived with two older men, roomers.

Olinian Arthur Hollaway (sometimes spelled Holloway) was born September 6, 1907 in New York City. He served in the New York National Guard, 369th Infantry, off & on between 1928-1930, as a musician. According to his service card he was a deserter, twice.

Olinian married Natalie Clementine Cooke in June in 1939. Very soon their daughter Janice was born in 1940. The family lived at 2025 4th St NW in the mid-1940s. In the 1940 census they lived at 2715 Georgia Ave NW. Janice was not listed.

After selling 1611 NJ Ave NW they bought 413 Jefferson Street NE.

Olinian died in 1985. Natalie was a widow for a very long time until she too passed on May 10, 2010. Despite being dead the house on Jefferson Street is still in both parties names and paying taxes. Since their daughter would be the logical real owner,  and she was born pre-WW2,  I’m not going to get my undies in a bunch about the senior citizen homestead exemption the Hollaways have.

I should be pretty much done with the Broadus family. But Bessie Broadus was listed as the head of household in 1950, so let me tie up this loose end.

I already went over most of the Broadus family history with the ownership of 1607 NJ Ave NW being in the Broadus family for about 100 years. Just a reminder, Wallace Broadus’ ownership can be traced back to 1919. He may have owned it before then. Then Arvid and his siblings owned the property.

Bessie Broadus was Wallace’s sister. As far as I can tell her name did not appear on the property. But she was a member of the family that owned 1607 New Jersey Ave NW, so close enough.

Bessie Broadus was born around 1899 to Berry and Louise Broadus. She worked at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. And she never married.

In 1945 William M. McLean, an African American carpenter and his wife, a domestic purchased 1636 4th St NW.  When the 1950 census rolled around the McLeans had separated. The census showed Daisy Rose McLean (Daisie Mae in the census) as the head of the household living with her daughter Lenora (also separated), Daisy’s grandchildren, her son James and daughter in law Evelyn.

In 1940 the McLean family lived at 219 D St SW. William, the carpenter, was the head of the family. He lived with wife Daisy, daughter Lenara/Lenora and their son James.

When the McLeans bought 1636 4th St NW they bought it from Teck Construction which sold a few homes on the 1600 block of 4th St around the mid 1940s. As part of the sale, they took out two loans, both from trustees Michael P. Cook and Ralph D. Quinter totaling $3750 at 6%. The smaller loan of $950 was cleared in 1949. The larger debt is harder to figure out.

In 1955 there were a couple of deeds. It appears the goal was to remove William’s name from the title and just have Daisy’s name. But after her death, around or before June 1970 it appears he didn’t lose interest and it is hard to tell if William and Daisy divorced. William is listed as a widower in the paperwork.

From 1970 to 1985 had several deeds and an Appointment Substitute Trustee. With the substitute trustee document it appears the 1945 $2800 loan was addressed, but I can’t tell. During this William the husband, James McLean Sr and Jr and Johnny McLean sign over their interest in the property to Leonora C. Wiggins (nee McLean). There was a will, and Leonora was the executor, and I was under the impression the 1955 deeds made Daisy the sole owner. Anywho, Leonora sold the property in 1985.