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 76 Bates St NW:
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 76 Bates Street NW to Frances C. and Kenneth J. Allen.
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) the Allens borrowed $3,150 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- January 1951 Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 76 Bates St NW to Bessie M. and Elbert Walker.
- Jan 1951 the Walkers borrowed $3,150 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- February 1962 the Allens were released from their mortgage.
- June 1963 the Walkers were released from their mortgage.
- October 1984 Frances C. Williams, formerly Frances Allen, and the Walkers sold 76 Bates to Edward A. and Elesa J. Kassoff.
This worked well. No foreclosures, the original buyers owned the home free and clear in the 1960s. The owners then sold the home in the 1980s.