The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 32 O St NW:
February 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 32 O St NW to widow Roxie A. Jackson.
Feb 1951 Mrs. Jackson borrowed $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
February 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 32 O St NW to Bermeda S. and Carl N. Pierce.
Feb 1951 Mr. & Mrs. Pierce borrowed $3,025 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
June 1952 Mrs. Jackson sold/transferred her half, via Ruth and Charles Rodgers Hawkins, to Mrs. Helena Isabel Ash.
February 1963 the Pierces paid off their mortgage.
February 1964 the Jackson loan was paid off.
October 7, 1959 Carl Nathaniel Pierce died.
January 1966 Mrs. Pierce, Helena Ash and her husband Charles Ash Jr. sold the whole of 32 O St NW to Anne and Irving Furash.
February 1966 the Furashes sold the property to the Diamond Housing Corporation.
No foreclosures. I was pleasantly surprised that when Roxie Jackson sold her home that it wasn’t foreclosed upon. I sometimes see that when that happens a foreclosure will follow. It all worked out for everyone. Yay.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 36 O St NW:
June 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 36 O St NW to Evelyn M. and Henry T. Venson.
June 1951 the Vensons borrowed $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
March 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 36 O St NW to Lottie B. and Albert J. Paul.
March 1951 the Pauls borrowed $3,125 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
August 1954 the Vensons lost their half to foreclosure. Evans, Levin and Taube regained ownership via an auction.
November 1961 as part of a larger property package, new owner Harry A. Badt, Evans, Taube, their wives and Levin’s survivors sold half of 36 O St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
December 1965 the Pauls paid off their mortgage.
July 1971 it appears that Basiliko sold his half to Housing System Dev. and Construction Corporation in a large property package. However…..
April 1978 Basiliko sold his half to Lottie B. and Linda Marie Paul, finally bringing the whole property under the Paul family.
So there was one foreclosure and it became a Basiliko property, but it has a happy ending with the Pauls.
Evelyn Venson (1926-1998)- PatriciaPeayBell originally shared this on Ancestry.com 24 Feb 2011
For fun, and because their names were unique, let’s look at the Vensons. According to an Ancestry family tree Henry Truitt Venson was born in 1918 in Atlanta, GA and died in 1964. During WWII he was living 1126 6th St NE, and his mother was in the TC at 1333 1st St NW. February 1955, his mother Hattie Venson Thrasher had been living at 43 Florida Ave NW. In 1959 he was charged with operating a lottery (running a numbers game), living on Morgan St. NW.
His wife, Evelyn Mary Robinson, was born the daughter of Madeline Swann and George W. Robinson April 7, 1926 in Washington, DC. She married Walter Bail Fields in 1943 and had a daughter Mary. In 1959 she married Henry T. Venson…. the dates aren’t lining up, but people are complicated. During the 1950 census she was separated, living with her parents and her children at 201 O St NW. In 1959 when she and Harry officially tied the knot, they were both living at 221 Morgan St NW, in Truxton Circle.
In 1954 the Vensons purchased 1625 4th St NW, also in Truxton Circle. However the previous owner was foreclosed upon and they lost that house too in 1956.
Evelyn moved to Rocky Mount, NC at some point, and that is the city where she died.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 28 O St NW:
February 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 28 O St NW to Naomi C. and Marcus S. King.
Feb 1951 the Kings borrowed $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
February 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 28 O St NW to Cora M. and Leo D. Malone.
Feb 1951 Malone borrowed $3,125 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
September 1952 the Malones lost their half to foreclosure and the property returned to Evans, Levin and Taube via an auction.
September 1952 Evans, Levin and Taube resold the foreclosed half to Alice Warren.
Sept 1952 Miss Warren borrowed $3,791.70 from Levin and Weightman.
March 1956 the Kings lost their home to foreclosure and the property returned to Evans, Levin and Taube via an auction.
June 1959 as part of a larger property package, Badt, Evans, Taube, their wives and Levin’s survivors sold the foreclosed half of the property to Sophia and George Basiliko.
July 1971 the Basilikos sold half of 28 and several other O St NW houses to the Housing System Dev. and Construction Corporation.
So two foreclosures. The rest of the property history is a little messy so I will leave it here. But I want to note that in 2010 the estate of Alice Warren represented by Vance Burden, sold the property.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 26 O St NW:
February 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 26 O St NW to Geneva T. and John L. Huffman.
December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) the Huffmans borrowed $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
February 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 26 O St NW to Adeline and Ozie Nash.
Feb 1951 the Nashs borrowed $3,125 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
July 1953 the Nashs borrowed $459.92 from trustees Mary Herbert and Jacob Sandler to be paid to Consolidated Engr. & Distr. Co. Inc.
June 1954 Geneva T. Huffman lost her home to foreclosure. Via an auction the property returned to the ownership of Evans, Levin and Taube.
April 1957 the Nashs lost their half of the home to foreclosure and the ownership returned to the Colonial Investment Co owners.
March 1959 as part of a larger property package, new owner Badt, Evans, Taube, their wives and Levin’s survivors sold 26 O St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
July 1971 the Basilikos sold the whole of 26 and other O St NW properties to the Housing System Dev. and Construction Corporation.
So there were two foreclosures and the house went to Basiliko.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 24 O St NW:
February 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 24 O NW to widow Ethel and her son Malvern F. Jackson.
February 1951 the Jacksons borrowed $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
January 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 24 O St NW to Irene M. and William P. McCall.
Jan 1951 the McCalls borrowed $3,125 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
September 1954 the McCalls lost their home to foreclosure. The property returned to Evans, Levin and Taube via an auction.
September 1954 the Jacksons sold the property back to Evans, Levin and Taube.
March 1959 as part of a larger property package, Badt, Evans, Taube, their wives and Levin’s survivors sold 24 O St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
July 1971 the Basilikos sold the whole of 18 O St NW to the Housing System Dev. and Construction Corporation.I don’t know what connection, if any the Housing System Dev. and Construction Corp had to DC’s RLA. Basiliko did these with several other O Street houses. And like several properties on O Street, they were condemned by the city.
Anywho, there was one foreclosure. Colonial Investments bought back the property and this is not the only time they have done this.
Malvern F. Jackson Sr. (1930-2015)
Lastly, looking up the Jacksons, I discovered that Malvern Jackson was living at 18 O St NW in January 1951, when he applied for a marriage license to marry Genevieve E. Lynch. He and Genevieve had a baby boy in late August 1951. He died in 2015, as a widower to Genevieve and survived the death of one of his sons. They had three children.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 22 O St NW:
February, 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 22 O St NW to Flora V. and Richard T. Kidd.
February 1951 the Kidds borrowed $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
March 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 22 O St NW to Bessie O. and Leroy Howard*.
March 1951 the Howards borrowed $3,125 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
May 1955 the Howards lost their half to foreclosure and via an auction the ownership returned to Evans, Levin, and Taube.
June 1957 the Kidds lost their half to foreclosure. The property returned to Evans, Taube, and new partner Harry Badt via an auction.
June 1957 (recorded July 1958) as part of a larger property package, the Badts (Harry A. and wife Jennie) transfer/sell their interest in 22 O St NW to Nathan Levin’s survivors.
March 1959 as part of a larger property package, Badt, Evans, Taube, their wives and Levin’s survivors sold 22 O St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
July 1971 the Basilikos, in a large property package, sold (doc 1971013980) 22 O St NW, along with a lot of other houses, to the Housing System Development and Construction Corp.
I’m going to stop at 1971. It is not sold to DC RLA but it was depressingly sold to George Basiliko.
*I noticed the Howards had bought 18 O St NW, next door. And they lost that to foreclosure too in June 1956.
So who were the Howards? They were an African American couple who for the most part lived in Prince George’s County Maryland. So I am not sure if they ever lived in DC during the time of their ownership.
Leroy Howard was born August 27, 1903 in Hertford County, North Carolina. His parents were John and Catherine Howard. He married the daughter of Ed and Annette (nee Gatling) Bonner, Bessie O. Bonner in 1921 in Perquimans, NC, when she was 18 and he was 21.
In the 1930 census the Howards lived in DC. Leroy Howard was listed as a 21 year old laborer renting 1021 50th St quadrant unknown. He lived there with wife, 25 years old, Bessie Howard and their three children Dorothy (7), John E (5), and Colee/ Cora L. (3).
By 1940, the Howards moved to PG County, and lived at 5149 Mash Street, Fairmount Heights, MD, a house they claimed to have owned. A quick look at Fairmount Height’s government website, it appears it was a Black community back then. I once knew where to find historic maps of PG Co. but I don’t feel like hunting them down. My skill set is DC.
The 1950 census had the Howards at 5114 Maple Road in Seat Pleasant, MD. The thing with the 1950 census, ownership status is unknown. Leroy was a self employed laborer. They lived with their three adult children and granddaughter Audrey Washington (1940-2006), daughter of Dorothy May Howard. Dorothy M. Washington also shows up in the 1950 census living in DC as a roomer without her daughter and separated from her husband Norman, living at 1-C 49th St SE.
Granddaughter Audrey Washington. Eastern HS 1957
I can’t find when Leroy died, but Bessie Olivia Howard appeared to have remarried sometime in the 1970s. According to the U.S. Social Security Applications and Claims Index, she became Bessie Jenkins in 1975. She was born Oct 8, 1902 and died in 1979.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
I see that two couples (four people) bought this house. Instead of doing my usual format, I will tell the story of these Black homeowners differently.
January 26, 1951 George A. and Gladys L. Watson, along with Lizzie M. and Clayton Williams purchased 137 Bates Street NW from Colonial Investment. Like other buyers they used the only lenders allowed in these transactions, trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman. They borrowed $5,050 and paid it off in February 1963. That same year the property was sold/transferred to the Williams. In 1964, the Williams got a new mortgage with Republic Savings and Loan Association, which was paid off in 1981. Clayton died July 25, 1971 and Lizzie died July 13, 1997 and her estate sold the home in 2018 for $805.5K.
I could not find a lot of information about Clayton Williams, but I was able to find things about Lizzie. In the 1950 census she was living at 95 Fenton Place NE with her four children. Clayton was not there. She was listed as the head and working as a servant for a private household.
George Albert Watson was born March 15, 1904 in Meriwether, Georgia. He married Gladys Elizabeth Littles in 1941 in Washington, DC. During WWII, he was working for the Zabans Mattress Company. Zabans seems to have been a Richmond company but possibly had a location in DC.
During the 1950 Census, George and Gladys were living at 4409 Falls Terrace SE, Apartment 4 with 7 year old daughter Jeresal F. and 4 year old son George Jr. George worked as a box spring maker and Gladys was a clerk typist for the Federal government. When she was single in 1940, she worked as a secretary’s assistant for the N.Y.A. Project. George died in 1967.
From Gladys’ obit: On Saturday, September 15, 2007 at Doctors Hospital of Lanham, MD. The beloved mother of Jearsel F. Watson and George A. (Lee Audrey) Watson, Jr.. Also survived by four grandchildren, three great grandchildren and a host of other relatives and friends.
I could not find an obvious connection between the Williams and the Watsons.
So I decided to fool around with AI before it takes my job and brings those Boston Dynamic killer dog robots to kill me.
I was playing with NotebookLM and decided to throw some Eloyce Gist stuff at it. The fake podcast it produced…. is interesting.
After asking several Eloyce Gist questions, I asked it about Truxton Circle. This is what I got:
While the sources provide information about a filmmaker who lived and worked in Truxton Circle, they do not offer a clear definition of “Truxton Circle.” The sources do include some clues about the nature of Truxton Circle, which may help to clarify:
● A historically Black neighborhood in Washington, D.C.: Several sources refer to Truxton Circle as a neighborhood in Washington, D.C. that was historically Black. For example, one source describes Truxton Circle as a “historically Black Truxton Circle neighborhood in Washington, DC.”
Another mentions a series on “Black home owners of Truxton Circle.”
● Home to a beauty school in the 1920s: The sources provide details about the life and work of Eloyce Gist, a Black filmmaker who owned and operated a beauty school in Truxton Circle in the 1920s. Gist purchased the property for her business, the Patrick School of Beauty Culture and Personal Improvements, in 1922.
The sources note that, at the time, Truxton Circle was “just becoming a majority Black neighborhood.”
● Located within the pre-Home Rule boundaries of Shaw: Several sources provide a map of the “Boundaries pre-Home Rule” for Shaw, a neighborhood in Washington, D.C..
These maps list the neighborhood’s boundaries as:
○ Western: 15th Street NW
○ Eastern: North Capitol Street NW
○ Northern: Florida Ave NW
○ Southern: New York Ave NW, between North Cap and New Jersey, M Street NW between 3rd and 13th Streets NW, and N Street between 13th and 15th Streets NW.
Based on these clues, it seems likely that Truxton Circle is:
● A neighborhood, or a smaller section within a neighborhood, located in Washington, D.C..
● Situated within the historical boundaries of the Shaw neighborhood.
● A historically Black community, at least as of the early 20th century.
However, without further information from the sources, it is impossible to say for certain what Truxton Circle is or to offer more specific details about its location, history, or character.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 1521 3rd St NW:
December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 1521 3rd St NW to Agnes C. and George O. Faison.
December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) the Faisons borrowed $3,750 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
December 1950 (recorded Jan 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 1521 3rd St NW to Widow Wardell White (nee Fletcher).
December 1950 (recorded Jan 1951) Mrs. White borrowed $3,750 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
February 1963 Mrs. White paid off her mortgage.
November 1967, the property was included in a larger package that was sold/transferred to Sophia and George Basiliko.
November 1967, a few days after the Basiliko package, the Faisons paid off their mortgage.
This is a decent story. No foreclosures but Basiliko shows up for no reason.
The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 1517 3rd St NW:
February 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 1517 3rd NW to Louis W. and Lucille H. Williams.
February 1951 the Williams borrowed $3,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
February 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 1517 3rd St NW to Mrs. Ethel W. Stanley.
Feb 1951 Stanley borrowed $3,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
May 1962 Stanley paid off her mortgage.
May 1962 Mr. and Mrs. Williams paid off their mortgage.
Another good ending. No foreclosure and mortgages paid off in 11 years.
