Month: January 2025

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 21 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 21 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Feb 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 21 Bates NW to Maggie Smith (not the Harry Potter actress).
  • December 1950  the widow Maggie Smith borrowed $1,900 from Colonial Investment Co. mortgage arm trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1950 (recorded Feb 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 21 Bates St NW to Daniel B. and Nell Whitfield.
  • Dec 1950 the Whitfields borrowed $1,900 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1965 Mrs. Smith paid off her mortgage owning her half free and clear.
  • October 1969 the Whitfields were released from their mortgage.
  • February 1970 the Whitfields had divorced and two documents transferred the property to Nell Manns (formerly Whitfield).
  • February 1971 Roy B. and Nell Manns received financing for a gas fired free standing heater from the Washington Gas & Light Company.
  • January 1973 Daniel Whitfield sold his interest in 21 Bates to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency.
  • January 1973 the Manns and Mrs. Smith sold their home to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA).
  • March 1971 the Manns were released from the Washington Gas financing deal.
  • June 1980 the DC RLA (doc #8000020294) transferred many properties, including 21 Bates, to the BSA Limited Partnership (Bates Street Associates). There is an associated contract (doc 8000020221, looks complete) stating BSA’s responsibilities.

One day I should explore that contract.

This was a decent history. No foreclosures. No slum lord, that I know of. However, they did sell to DC RLA who then transferred it to BSA.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 17 Bates Street NW

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.

photo of property
17 Bates, Light Green House next to olive house.

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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 17 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold the whole of 17 Bates St NW to Lydia C. Rhyme.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Lydia C. Rhyme borrowed $3,800 from Colonial Investment Co.’s mortgage arm with trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1950 Ms. Rhyme sold half of 17 Bates St NW to Ann C. Stukes.
  • December 1950 Rhyme sold the other half to Otis Wise.
  • December 1950  Stukes borrowed $1,663.75 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • November 1952 Wise borrowed $1,663.74 from Levin and Weightman.
  • March 1953 (doc# 1953011195) Rhymes was released from her mortgage with the benefit going to Wise and Stukes.
  • November 1961 Wise was released from his mortgage.
  • December 1965 Stukes was released from her mortgage.
  • December 1968 Emma and Nathaniel Vaughan, Emma being Stukes’ heir, sold their half to George Basiliko.
  • May 1977, Otis Wise had died and Jennie Walker, his sister sold/transferred his half to his widow Idella Wise.
  • August 1978 Idella Wise sold her half to George Basiliko, Inc.
  • August 1978 George Basiliko Inc sold the property to the Bates Street Ventures Partnership.

Well this worked out for Stukes and Wise. Basiliko seemed to be an instrument to get the property to Bates Street Ventures Partnership, who would eventually transfer the property back to Basiliko. Bates Street Ventures appears to be totally different from Bates Street Associates as the signatories for loans are Gerald Diaz and Edward A. Kassoff.

I cannot locate anything about Ms. Rhyme and nothing definitive about Ann Stukes.

Otis/Odis Wise, in the 1950 census was living as a lodger at 515 L St NW. He was working as a machine operator for the Department of Justice and separated from his wife.  In an earlier 1940 census, he lived at 1135 5th St NW with his wife “Adella” where he worked as a messenger at the Department of Justice and she worked as a seamstress at home. For some reason he did not list her as the person who would know where he was on his WW2 draft card. Otis Wise and Dollie Wolf were married in 1919 in South Carolina. However, this was not reflected in the 1920 census, as he was living with parents Annie & John Wise in SC. In the 1930 census his wife was “Idel” and according to it, they had been married for 5 years. Then he worked as a laborer for the Navy Yard.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 15 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 15 Bates St NW:

  • January 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold the whole of 15 Bates St NW to Jessie I. Johnson, married and Maude Y. Ryles, widow.
  • Jan 1951 Johnson and Ryles borrowed $6,050 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • July 1963 Ryles and Johnson borrowed $6,600 from the Perpetual Building Association with trustees Junior F. Crowell and Samuel Scrivener Jr.
  • October 1963 Ryles and Johnson were released from their Jan 1951 mortgage.
  • October 1963 Ryles and Johnson benefited from the release of a loan taken out by Evans, Levin and Taube in November 1950.

This appears to work as promised. No foreclosures, no slum lords, no redevelopment agencies.

I found the Maude Ryles lived at 15 Bates Street NW according to the 1954 city directory. The rest of her history, I am not 100% about, but here’s my best shot. She may have been Maude Ann Yancey as a 1961 obit for Mariah H. Yancey mentions Maude Ann Ryles as the stepmother to her and several other girls and the foster mother of George Jordon of New York. So that’s where I guess the Y is for. In the 1950 census she was living at 62 Q St NW, Apt. 2, with a roommate and working as some sort of operator for Veteran’s (Affairs?). She died June 1980 and according to the Social Security Death Index she was born May 13, 1902, however her grave differs saying she was born in 1903.

According to the obit on the Find a Grave site, Jessie Y. Johnson was her sister. So I looked for her in the 1954 city directory and found her at 15 Bates Street NW. It appears she was an examiner for the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. In the 1950 census, she too was living at 62 Q St NW, but Apt 1. She was living with her husband Chester Arthur Johnson and 20 year old daughter Iris.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 31 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 31 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 31 Bates St NW to divorcée Helen L. Campbell.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 1951) Campbell borrowed $2,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 31 Bates St NW to Rosa Abbitt.
  • Dec 1950 Abbitt borrowed $2,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • March 1961 Campbell was released from her mortgage.
  • September 1961 Abbitt was released from her mortgage.
  • November 1, 1963 Abbitt died.
  • May 1962 Susie Monroe Williams, Abbitt’s sole heir, sold her half to Orson L. and  Vera D. Huntsman.
  • February 1971 the Huntsmans sold their half to George Basiliko.
  • December 1971 there was a “Notice of Lien” placed on Campbell’s half where her heir Irene C. Gregg was named by the DC Department of Public Welfare. From what I can tell, Ms Gregg was receiving assistance from the city and the city made a claim on her house.
  • October 1974 Gregg sold her half to George Basiliko and now he owned the whole property.
  • February 1975 the DC Department of Human Services, Social Service Administration. Examination and Compliance Division released the lien.
  • August 1978 Basiliko sold 31 Bates St to the Bates Street Ventures Partnership.

No foreclosures. The original buyers paid off their mortgages. It was fine until the property was sold to George Basiliko.

Abbitt was mentioned as a widow in the land records. She was a divorcée. I located a Virginia divorce record for 1963. Rosa Williams Abbott of 11A Bates Street NW (why not 31?) divorced George Elbert Abbott. The record said they had been separated since April 1942. For his WW2 draft card, he was living with his wife at 318 New Jersey Ave NW, Apt 4. They were both from Prince Edward County, Virginia. In the 1950 census she lived alone at 1131 D St NE. She worked as a charwoman at the US General Services Agency.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 29 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 29 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Feb 14, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold the whole of 29 Bates St NW to Albert and Lula G. Davis.
  • December 1950 the Davis borrowed $3,800 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • July 1956 Mr. and Mrs. Davis lost the house to foreclosure and Badt, Evans, and Taube repossessed the property via an auction.
  • July 1956 (doc 1958025808) Harry and Jennie Badt transferred their interests in the property and several others to Nathan Levin’s survivors.
  • March 1959 (doc #1959019387) Badt, Evans, Taube, Nathan Levin’s survivors, their spouses sold this and several other properties on the block to Sophia and George Basiliko.
  • Between 1971-1972 Basiliko was released from three mortgages and the next document has the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA) as the owner, so we are left to assume around 1970 Basiliko sold the property to RLA.
  • June 1980 (doc #8000020294) the DC RLA sold/transferred this and other properties to BSA Limited Partnership. BSA is possibly short for Bates Street Associates. It is paired with doc #8000020221 a contract between DC RLA and BSA Ltd Partnership.

There was one foreclosure for the one original buyer couple. Then the leaders and interests of Colonial Investment Co sold the property to slum landlord George Basiliko. From Basiliko it goes to DC RLA and then BSA. It basically fits the usual pattern.

Albert Arnold Davis, if I have the right Albert Davis, was born in 1909 in Virginia. He was married to Lula G. Davis. In 1950 the couple, then 43 & 44 years old, lived at 436 V St NW Apt 1 with their two sons William A. (10 yo) and Franklin (9 yo). There is another person in the house listed as a daughter Mary Morgan, aged 29, with her 4 year old son George. Morgan seems to old to be their daughter, but it is possible. At that time Albert worked as a porter for a printing shop and Lula worked as a domestic attendant for a hospital.

For the 1940 census, the couple lived at the same address on V St. At that time William A. was an infant and they lived with Albert’s father William, who was 69 years old, his sister and their 14 year old niece. Albert was still a porter and Lula did not work outside of the home.

Going further back to the 1930 census, Albert was a 21 year old roomer at 1610 8th St NW. He was single and working as a porter.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 51 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 51 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 51 Bates St NW to Louise V. Brown a widow, and Bertha E. Oliver, separated.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Brown and Oliver borrowed $2,900 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 51 Bates St NW to Christine B. Gregg.
  • Dec 1950 Gregg borrowed $2,900 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • September 1961 Brown and Oliver were released from their mortgage.
  • April 1962 Gregg was released from her mortgage.
  • August 1972 Gregg (husband Jessie Charles Gregg mentioned but unsigned), Brown and Oliver sold 51 Bates to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA) for $13,000.
  • June 1980 (doc #8000020294) the DC RLA sold/transferred this and other properties to BSA Limited Partnership. BSA is possibly short for Bates Street Associates. It is paired with doc #8000020221 a contract between DC RLA and BSA Ltd Partnership.

No foreclosures. No known slum landlord. Original buyers were able to pay off the mortgages. This was a good story. However they did sell the property to DC RLA which makes me wonder if the properties were in bad shape.

According to a 1960 city directory Christine Bennett Gregg was a nurse living at 51 Bates Street NW. She could have been the same Christine Gregg in the 1950 living as a lodger with the Maynard family at 1443 Q St NW working house worker for a private family. She was 37, separated, and born in North Carolina. Her husband, and it looks like a case of abandonment, was a Pullman porter according to his WW2 Army Enlistment record. She retired as a licensed practical nurse. She died in 1993 in North Carolina.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 55 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 55 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 55 Bates St NW to Ruth C. Morris.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Ms. Morris borrowed $2,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • January 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 55 Bates St NW to Rodena Hood.
  • Jan 1951 Ms. Hood borrowed $2,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • October 1952 Ms. Morse sold her half to the widow A. E. Pickett.
  • September 1956 Ms. Hood lost her half to foreclosure. It was repossessed by Badt, Evans, and Taube via an auction.
  • Sept 1956 Harry A. and wife Jennie Badt sold/transferred their interest in the property to Nathan Levin’s survivors.
  • June 1959 (doc #1959024641), as part of a large property package, Badt, Evans, Taube, Nathan Levin’s survivors, and their spouses sold 55 Bates to Sophia and George Basiliko.
  • June 1963 Ms. Morris, and by extension Mrs. Pickett, was released from her mortgage.
  • October 1965 Mrs. A. B. Pickett borrowed $5,959 from the United Mortgage Company represented by trustees A.J. Mascetta and Ralph O. Weed.
  • December 1979 George Basiliko, Inc sold his half to Otis B. Womack.
  • December 1985 the Estate of Otis B. Womack transferred the half to Otis’ brother James E. Womack.
  • June 1985 the estate of A.B. Pickett sold her half to James E. Womack.

This has two elements of the pattern with one mortgage and the sale of that foreclosed unit to George Basiliko. But it was not sold to the DC Redevelopment Agency and avoided that part of the cycle.

For some reason the name Otis Womack seemed familiar, so I Googled it. I no longer have a Washington Post subscription, but it’s one of the first things to pop up with a story from October 24, 1981. Otis Womack was the owner of the Little Florida Avenue Market at 141 Florida Avenue NW when he was shot dead in a robbery. His name is also buried in a 1981 Congressional document regarding gun violence. His son Wayne Ellis David, an MPD officer, died recently in 2024, in a tragic accident when he attempted to retrieve a gun from a storm drain.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 57 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 57 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 57 Bates St NW to Hugh and Lillie Mae Davis.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 1951) Mr. & Mrs. Davis borrowed $2,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 57 Bates St NW to Audrey E. and Homer R. Nue.
  • Dec 1950 the Nues borrowed $2,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • October 1951 Mr. and Mrs. Davis sold their half to Margaret M. Moore.
  • September 1955 the Nues sold their half back to Evans, Levin and Taube. May 1962 they were released from their mortgage.
  • November 1961, as part of a large property package (doc 1962000416),  Badt, Evans, Taube, Nathan Levin’s survivors and their spouses sold 57 Bates to Sophia and George Basiliko.
  • November 1961 the Basilikos borrowed $57,000 from TELSYNDICATE (represented by Evans and Taube as trustees) for 57 units/lots, including 57 Bates.
  • November 1966, Mr. and Mrs. Davis, and by extension Margaret Moore, were released from their mortgage.
  • January 1979 Margaret M. and Lonnie Moore sold their half to George Basiliko Inc.
  • March 1979 George Basiliko Inc sold the property to H.R.L. Inc (Edward A. Kassoff, President & Gerald Diaz, Secretary).

I’ll leave it there in 1979. There are no foreclosures, no sale to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency nor to the Bates Street Associates. Without those 57 Bates did not fit the pattern. The only thing that fit the pattern was the sale of both halves of 57 Bates to George Basiliko. There was also a resale to Colonial Investment Co.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 59 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 59 Bates St NW:

  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 26, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 59 Bates St NW to Charles H. Wilson.
  • December 1950 (recorded Jan 1951) Wilson borrowed $2,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • December 1950 (recorded Feb 21, 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 59 Bates St NW to Lera C. and Lester A. Jones.
  • Dec 1950 the Jones borrowed $2,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • November 1955 Mr. & Mrs. Jones lost their half to foreclosure. Through an auction Evans, Levin and Taube regained the property.
  • June 1959 (doc #1959024641), as part of a large property package, Evans, Taube, new partner Harry A. Badt, Nathan Levin’s survivors, and their spouses sold the foreclosed half of 59 Bates to Sophia and George Basiliko.
  • August 1959 the Basilikos borrowed $17,000 from TELSYNDICATE (represented by Evans and Taube as trustees) for 34 units/lots, including 59 Bates.
  • January 1961 Charles H. Wilson lost his half to foreclosure and it was repossessed in an auction by Badt, Evans, and Taube.
  • April 1961 Badt, Evans, Taube, Nathan Levin’s survivors, and their spouses sold the foreclosed half to George Basiliko who at that point owned the property as a whole.
  • Between 1970-1973, as there is no document located but ownership went from Basiliko to the DC Redevelopment Agency (RLA).
  • June 1980 DC RLA entered into a contract (doc # 8000020221) with BSA (Bates Street Associates) and transferred a large number of properties to the (doc # 8000020294) Bates Street Associates (BSA).

Two foreclosures, sale to the Basilikos, twice, then eventual transfer to RLA who will then transfer it to BSA. It fits the pattern.

Normally I leave out the Basiliko borrowing. There are several transactions Basiliko does that I’m not particularly interested in. However, I decided to do it with this one. And doing so noticed that Colonial Investment Co., in part at least, financed the purchase.

WSIC-1950 Sell Off- 61 Bates Street NW

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. In 1956 Nathan Levin died and Colonial Inv. Co. vice president Harry A. Badt took his place in the foreclosure paperwork. 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.photo of property

Let’s see what happens with 61 Bates St NW:

  • January 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold all of 61 Bates St NW to Randall R. Evans.
  • Jan 1951 Evans borrowed $5,050 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
  • March 1957 Evans sold the house back to Colonial Investment Co. to Badt, Evans, and Taube. Jan 1962 he was released from his mortgage.
  • January 1962 Badt, Evans, Taube, Nathan Levin’s survivors and their spouses sold 61 Bates to divorcee Frances R. Atwood.
  • Jan 1962 Atwood borrowed $7,500 from the Perpetual Building Association, represented by trustees Junior F. Crowell and Samuel Scrivener Jr. at 6% interest.
  • Jan 1962 in the third consecutive document, Atwood sold/transferred the property to Evans, Nathan Levin’s survivors, and Taube.
  • October 1962 Evans, Levin’s survivors, Taube and their spouses, as part of a property package, with other 1/2 houses on the block, to Colonial Mortgage trustee Robert G. Weightman and his wife Eleanore L.
  • October 1962 the Weightmans borrowed $32,709.85 from TELSYNDICATE, represented by Colonial Inv. Co’s Evans & Taube, for 61 Bates and 10 other properties.
  • April 1971 the Weightmans sold 61 Bates to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA) for $12,000.
  • May 1971 it appears the Weightmans paid off the Atwood loan taken out in Jan 1962, along with several other separate loans.
  • July 1978 there is a contract (doc 7800024140) between the DC RLA and the Bates Street Associates, Inc. (BSA) There is no corresponding deed located, but the property was transferred to BSA.

There are some unusual things with this property. There are no foreclosures, but it does get sold to the DC RLA and then BSA. The first unusual thing, and maybe I didn’t notice it before, the Colonial Inv. Co. sold it to Ms. Atwood who borrowed money from a unaffiliated 3rd party (Perpetual Building Assoc.) and then sold it to someone else. The second thing was someone associated with the Colonial Investment Co., Robert Weightman buying company property. Not directly, thus Ms. Atwood. I recently discovered Colonial Investment Co. had a spin off Colonial Mortgage Co., represented by Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman. Usually in that time slot it would have been sold to Geo. Basiliko, slum landlord. But it wasn’t sold to him, that’s the third unusual thing.