Truxton Circle WSIC Wardmans

If I had good sense I would not write this.

I hope I am providing a good warning to my friends who live in TC WSIC housing. I am not for historic districts (I can be agnostic about landmarks) and I am very aware how my research can be used to create these things. Anywho, there are Truxton Circle Wardmans as highlighted by the site Wardman’s Washington. However, I am just going to look at the WSIC TC Wardmans.

photo of property47 Bates Street NW (2 Stories brick dwelling) —Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 7/16/1901
49 Bates Street NW (2 Stories brick dwelling) —Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 7/16/1901
51 Bates Street NW (2 Stories brick dwelling) —Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 7/16/1901
53 Bates Street NW (2 Stories brick dwelling) —Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 7/16/1901
94 Bates Street NW (2 Stories brick dwelling)— Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 9/10/1901
14 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
16 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
18 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
20 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
22 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
24 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
26 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
28 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
30 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
32 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
34 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
36 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
38 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
40 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901
42 O Street NW (2 Stories brick flat) — Architect: Bayliss, Mr. Permit Date: 5/31/1901

The architect was a Mr. Bayliss. So I went looking to see if I could narrow it down to which Bayliss in Washington, DC may have been the architect. I’m guessing it was William Bayliss.

In the 1900 census there was a William Bayliss at 1410 9th St NW whose occupation was listed as “Architect Govt”. Good enough for me. There were other Bayliss men working in DC, a R. inspector, a shoe store salesman, and the like. But so far only one an architect. I looked at the 1902 city directory (the 1900 directory didn’t have occupations) Major W. Bayliss at 1410 9th St NW was a draftsman.

A little digging showed that William Bayliss died in 1919 so I hoped his obit would tell me something useful. Nope. I did locate him in the 1914 Blue Book, a social directory, page 74 reads thus:

Bayliss, Major William, architect and government official of Washington, D.C., was born Nov. 8, 1848, in Canada. Since 1882 he has been superintendent of hospital construction in the office of the surgeon-general of the army.

I’m 80% sure this is the guy.

 

 

 

Memory Lane: Elections at Dunbar

Election Day at Dunbar Senior High School. Taken November 2006.

We used to vote at this ugly building.

Memory Lane: Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church

The Former Israel Metropolitan CME. Taken 12/20/2007

This church building gives me Lutheran church vibes. This church sits in the Mount Vernon Sq part of Truxton Circle. It also housed the Israel Metropolitan CME Church during the 1957 Church Survey.

Memory Lane: Dunbar HS Falling Apart

Going through my photo catalog and remembering in 2007 Dunbar High School was in bad shape. This may have been wind damage.

2nd Dunbar High School building. Taken around December 2007.
2nd Dunbar High School building. Taken around December 2007.
2nd Dunbar High School building. Taken around December 2007.

 

Memory Lane: There’s a house there now- 1541 4th St NW

1500 block of 4th St NW or Islamic Way NW. Taken December 15, 2007.

See the photo above. There was a space between the taller yellow house and the shorter white house. That space is 1541 4th St NW. What is there now is a house worth around a million dollars according to Redfin. Infill I think is the word I should use.

Memory Lane: 403 R St NW

I’m going through old photos, walking down memory lane I spot this bunch of 403 R St NW.

Taken December 23, 2007. 400 block of R St NW.

I’ve researched the history with Black Home Owner- Lewis Griffin. And I’ve looked at it as a long vacant house on the 400 block of R Street with cinder block windows.

Those permits in the window seemed just for show. Nothing happened to this house for years and years.

Fast forward to today, and Redfin claims the renovated house is worth well over a million dollars. The key word here is “renovated”.

I’m going to resist going on a tangent about the worth of housing. I’m very sorry that housing has gotten so ‘flippin’ expensive. But that’s the cost of all the things we want out of housing. The cheapest housing in the world is a tent or a crappy hut with some random materials thrown together on land you can’t claim. We want walls that are strong and will keep out the bad weather. We want A/C and heat. We want to keep out rodents (good luck). We want plumbing and electrical systems that work. And we want the local municipality to approve it. All this adds costs. It doesn’t explain all of the costs.

Anyway, this went from being an abandoned vacant house to a home.

Memory Lane- 36 Florida Ave NW 2004

 

Taken on August 28, 2004 looking at 36 Florida NW.

Now there is a pop up on top. This is pre pop top.

Taken on August 28, 2004. On Unit block of FL Ave NW.

Memory Lane- John Cook School now Mundo Verde at dusk

Memory lane is the series where I go through my old photos of the Truxton Circle (or Shaw) neighborhood and reflect.

The John Cook School is the building that Mundo Verde PCS now occupies. When the photos were taken in 2007, I believe the school had recently closed, but the city kept the lights on.

Taken November 29, 2007. John Cook School.
Taken November 29, 2007. John Cook School.
Taken November 29, 2007. John Cook School.
Taken November 29, 2007. Boys entrance to John Cook School.
Taken November 29, 2007. Girls entrance for Cook school.
Taken November 29, 2007 at dusk. John Cook School.
Taken on November 29, 2007. Corner of John Cook School at dusk.

 

 

 

Memory Lane- New York/M Street Firehouse

211 M St NW. Taken August 28, 2004 or 2005

This is a close up of the old firehouse at 219 M Street NW, but it could just as well be on New York Avenue NW. Twenty years ago neighborhood had a lot of great historical assets that were being neglected or not kept up. This was one of them.

Currently the firehouse is a fitness gym called Flex, and this is their DC location. I think prior to that it was a parkour gym.