It’s been a while since I have written up one of these comparative histories.
Although the African American home owners of Truxton Circle are my focus, I am looking at a few other blocks in Washington, DC to compare them to. So I looked at the census for blocks in the city that were in the F1 or red-lined category, but happened to be 90%-100% white. I included Georgetown, and this is the story of one household.
George W. Thomas was born in DC on November 15, 1870. His father was a carpenter and also named George W. and in 1880 the family lived in Georgetown. He was one of 10 children. In 1893 he married Elizabeth Schlosser. In 1900 he shows up twice in the census. He’s at 3042 P St NW with his wife and a family of boarders (Enumeration Dist 25 page 8). And he’s at his father’s on S or T St NW (Enumeration Dist 19 page 17) in Georgetown, with his siblings minus his wife.
Prior to the George W. and his wife Elizabeth moving to 1505 33rd St NW, they lived about a block over, renting 3042 P St NW in the 1900-1910 census. In the 1920 census they rented space in Dupont Circle at 2150 P St NW. George had been a carpenter, like his father, but then moved into cement mixing. It appears they had no children.
Looking at the land records the first few documents for the Thomas household are from 1923 and the lot numbers are (0163-0164) where Irene and William Ballenger sold the two lots to Nellie G. Stees. In the next numbered document, on that same day, sold it to Elizabeth and George W. Thomas. In the following document the Thomas borrowed $2000 at 7% from the trustees of the Northwest Savings Bank and $1000 for a 2nd mortgage from trustees R.E.L. Yellott and Raymond Read. A month later the Thomas’ were named in the release of the Ballenger’s 1920 mortgage. December 1923 George & Elizabeth took out a $3000 mortgage with the Home Building Association of the District of Columbia. It appears they used the money to pay off the Northwest Savings Bank.
In 1935 George and Elizabeth sold the home to Joseph A. Jr. and Edith Corinne Gargiulo.
So in the 1940 census they had moved out to the Palisades living at 5517 Carolina Place NW. At that point he was 69 years old and still in the concrete business. According to the social security office he died in 1952.
The difference I see between this White household and the Black households of Truxton Circle is the Northwest Savings Bank. I haven’t seen that bank operating in the TC.