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 72 Bates St NW:
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 72 Bates St NW to Gladys M. and Leon W. Lucas.
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Mr. and Mrs. Lucas borrowed $3,025 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 72 Bates St NW to Elizabeth and Robert Anderson.
- December 1950 the Andersons borrowed $3,025 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- July 1954 the Lucas lost their half to foreclosure and via an auction it returned to Evans, Levin and Taube.
- June 1959 in a larger property package the foreclosed have was sold by Badt, Evans, Taube, Levin’s survivors and their spouses sold 72 Bates to to Sophia and George Basiliko.
- September 1961 the Andersons were released from their mortgage.
- November 1971 the Andersons and the Basilikos sold 72 Bates to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA).
- July 1978 there is a contract (doc 7800024140) between the DC RLA and the Bates Street Associates, Incorporated (BSA) There is no corresponding deed located, but the property was transferred to BSA.
One foreclosure which was sold to slum landlord Basiliko. One of the original buyers with the Basilikos sold it to DC RLA who then passed it on to the BSA.