In lieu of a February Black History post, WSIC continues, because it is Black History.
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.
Let’s see what happens with 32 Bates St NW:
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold the whole of 32 Bates NW to Barney and Carrie Campbell.
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) the Campbells borrowed $3,800 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- March 1962 the Campbells were released from their mortgage owning 32 Bates St NW free and clear.
I have no idea what happened after 1962. There is a gap between the ownership of the Campbells and when Carneil Galbert, Clyde McCallister and Mary McRae sell the home to Annie Galbert Crosland and Chester Galbert in 1977. What happened with the Campbells? IDK.