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 was the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 136 Q St NW:
- January 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 136 Q St NW to Emma and William Allen.
- January 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 136 Q St NW to Mamie and Roland F. Hawkins.
- Jan 1951 Mitchell borrowed $3,150 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- July 1951 the Hawkins sold their property to Otha N. and Rosa M. Currie. Unfortunately……
- February 1955, their half was foreclosed upon by Levin and Weightman and returned, via an auction, to Evans, Levin and Taube. But before that…..
- July 1954, the Allens lost their home to foreclosure and via an auction, return to Evans, Levin and Taube.
- March 1959 Evans and Taube (and their wives) and the survivors of Nathan Levin, as part of a larger property package, sold 136 Q St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
- Sometime between 1968 and 1978 Basiliko sold 136 Q St to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency.
Now we go down the checklist of the things that happen with properties like this. Foreclosure, checked twice. Transfer to George Basiliko, check. Eventual ownership by the DC RLA, check.