In 1920 the odd side of the 1700 block of New Jersey Ave NW was 100% White. So let’s look at 1701 New Jersey Ave.
In 1920 census there are three households living at 1701 New Jersey Ave NW. The first is headed by George Richard Comley (Conney in the census), a 31 year old hotel chauffeur on his 2nd marriage. He lived with wife Gertrude Hattie Scheuch (1900-1923), baby Marguerite, and daughters from a previous marriage, Ruth (1908-1991) and Ethel.
I was able to clear up the Comley’s name discrepancy and discover the 2nd marriage via George’s daughters Ruth Mae (later Scott), then 11 and 9 year old Ethel Elizabeth (1910-1993). In 1910, driver George and then wife Florence (nee Arrington) were living at 1014 7th St NE with son George and daughter Ruth M.. Ethel was born August 10, 1910 and her social security docs say Florence was her mother. When WWI rolled around (1917), George was divorced with 3 dependent children.
I can’t find George R. Comley past the 1930 census. It is possible he died of a heart attack in 1931. It also appears he was an optimist on his 3rd marriage with Helen Hogan (1893-1952) living at 1607 O St NW. That census year he was still working as a chauffeur, living with 10 year old daughter Margaret E. (later Hutchins) (1919-1996) and 7 year old Marie G. (1922-1997). By 1930 Ethel had become Mrs. Pitcock, living in Colesville, MD with her husband and two young boys. Older sister Ruth managed to disappear until her death. Maybe because she was in jail from a vague embezzlement 1935 arrest?
The second household were the Smiths, headed by 27 year old traffic cop Ellis W. Smith (1892-1975). He lived with his 21 yr old brother, Leon S. Smith (1898-1982) an electric car conductor, 17 yr old sister Grace (later Tubbs)(1902-1995) a cigar store saleswoman, and 59 year old widowed mother, Annie E. Smith (nee Hodgeson) (1860-1927). Ellis briefly served in the Army during WWI.
By 1930 the Smiths had moved on but not far. The mother Annie was dead. Sister Grace had married Victor Tubbs and was mother to two girls, Iva & Emma, and a son, Nelson. She lived at 139A Bates St NW. Looking back at the newspaper search for 139 Bates, I see Annie Smith died there. That same newspaper search reveals son Nelson Tubbs was there in 1949 when marrying, literally the girl next door, Beverly J. Trite, of 137 Bates St NW. By the 1950 census, Victor and Grace were empty nesters. In 1930, Ellis was a White House policeman, and had moved to Cottage City, MD in PG County. He lived there with his wife Lucy, daughter Barbara and son Robert.
Brother Leon Standford Smith was in Cleveland, OH in 1930 working in the auto industry. At age 31, he married Ida Maude Miller in 1929 in Homer, MI. By 1940, he was back in DC working as a guard, and back in Truxton Circle at 219A Bates St NW with his wife, an adopted daughter and a couple of lodgers, Mrs. Morgan and her baby Nancy. In 1950 the Smiths were at 3940 Blaine St NE, with their 20 year old daughter who was separated, their 2 grandchildren, and a 10 year old lodger by the name of Nancy Morgan. In the 50s Leon worked for the US Post Office. When he died in Florida, he was a retired mail handler.
This is getting fairly long, I will deal with the third household of the Saxtys in part 2.
