History – Page 44 – Truxton Is In Shaw

Black Home Owners of Truxton Circle: Frederick B. Turner

Currently 244 P St NW is the Phanelson Memorial Apostolic Church. I took a quick look at the 1957 Church Survey and this structure was not a church then. But back in 1920 (or maybe before) it was the home of Frederick B. Turner, an African American waiter, and his family.Looking at Sq. 553, lot 99 records it looks like Frederick Booker Turner and his wife Irene Amelia (nee Malone) borrowed money in 1921, 1924, 1932, and 1947 using their home.

In 1920, Frederick Turner lived at 244 P St NW with his wife, lived with their daughter Geneva V., sons Leon Lovelace and Leonard Frederick, and his brother I Garland Turner. In 1930, the family household included Mr. Turner’s mother Annie Shade Turner, a new son Frederick (Jr?) and daughter Antionette Mae (side note- she wound up marrying 4 times by 1978). By 1930 it appears his brother moved on. Another, very slight change, Mr. Turner went from being a waiter at a hotel to being a waiter at a restaurant.

Mr. Turner died in December of 1966 according to the Social Security death index, somewhere in the 20010 zip code. Mrs. Turner died April 13, 1978. He seems to disappear after the 1930 census. He pops up in 1941, and is still a waiter, but we get the name of the restaurant where he worked.

In 1947, the Turners sold the property to Ernest Clinton Winfield, a Black native Washingtonian, after paying back their debt to the Washington Loan and Trust Company. Mr. Winfield borrowed $7,500.00 from the same institution when he purchased the property.

Black Home Owners of Truxton Circle: Emma Ashton

Note- This was sitting in my draft folder. I don’t know why. It’s probably lacking some information, but I don’t know what.

Mrs. Ashton lived at 1405 1st St NW in Truxton Circle. She was not the only person to live at that address in 1920. I count about 14 people living there. It’s a modest house, so I’m not sure how one could crowd 5 households of that many people in that house.

Mrs. Emma Ashton, an African American widow of Ludwell Ashton had lived at 1405 1st St NW since 1900. In the 1900 Census she’s at 1405, living with her 75 year old widowed mother Adeline Brooks, who was the owner, her husband and their sons, Kellogg B. and Leonard A. Ashton. In 1920 the roles had changed, Emma was the head and the owner and her then 93 year old mother wasn’t.

Emma Ashton does not appear long in the Recorder of Deed’s records. There are several financial records for 1922, which aren’t particularly clear to me. She could have extended some loans, but I’m not sure. This period lasted between 1922 and 1924. It appears that she lost lot 11 (on Square 616) in 1934 and lot 816 in 1929.

Looking for an Emma Ashton for all of DC uncovered other property she owned in Truxton Circle, 302 Florida Ave NW (0519-0072) and 14?? 1st St NW (0553-0122). It appears she sold the property on 1st St in 1922 to Gertrude E. Holmes.

1957 Church Survey: St. Paul the Apostle

Once again, this is a church that no longer exists, on lots that no longer exist. St. Paul the Apostle sat at 15th and V Streets NW. It’s campus was on Square 203, lots 800, 801, 802, 803, 806, 807, & 808. The only one of those lots that still exists is 806. photo of property
Maybe in the future I will look into when the diocese decided to close or rename it, as St. Augustine sits there now.

St. Augustine is a primarily African American Church. St. Paul was a majority White church, though there is mention that Blacks attended mass in the 1957 church survey.

St. Paul the Apostle’s 1957 demographic information leaves much to be desired. The membership was around 1200 but what were their occupations? Eh, mainly the government. What was the age range? Eh, middle aged? What the heck is 1957 middle aged? It changes depending on how long people live. The geographic info is based on parish boundaries, which most people these days ignore (myself included). The boundary for St. Paul the Apostle was 20th St NW (a bit of Dupont/ Adams Morgan), Girard St NW, 7th St NW, and Q St NW.

Anyway, here’s the 1957 survey page:

CS-56-St Paul the Apostile by Mm Inshaw

Police of Truxton Circle- Thomas Lawlor

Here’s a quick story of Thomas Lawlor. In November 1882 Ofc. Thomas Lawlor, an Irish immigrant, who lived on 4th St NW in Truxton Circle, was at work and fell ill. Then he went home, and died.
Thomas Lawlor lived at 1618 4th St NW with his wife Ellen, and their two children Daniel and Mary in 1880.

The 1880 census didn’t ask if people were owners or renters. I only discovered that Lawlor owned the property because I was searching for the newspaper announcement that he had died. In addition to finding his funeral arrangements, I found a mention of a real estate transfer.

For some reason Thomas Lawlor, the resident of 1618 4th St NW in 1880, sold/ transferred the property (0509E-0053) to James Lawlor in 1878. I don’t know if James is a relative.

It seems to be a very Irish thing, of that time, to have something at the home of the deceased. It appears they departed from 1618 and made their way to Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. I wonder if the German George Glorius and his family, one block over, joined the procession? The Glorius family also attended Immaculate, which from personal experience, is a 15 minute brisk walk away from 1618.

There is very little of interest in his personnel file (see https://catalog.archives.gov/id/145835884). He seemed to have wandered into a grocery on North Capitol, where he wasn’t supposed to be, and was written up for it.

Police of Truxton Circle- James S. Boswell

There were several cops in Truxton Circle. The two I can think of also died in Truxton Circle. Somewhere I had a list of men who listed themselves as policemen in the various census. Once things open back up I can go down the list and review their personnel files, as I have here for James Boswell.

You may remember James Boswell from the Black Homeowners of TC: The tragic story of Ofc James S. Boswell post. He, his wife and the odd family member lived at 219 Q St. NW. He had a very short retirement, less than a month. And then, he died. And not too long after that, his wife died.

As you can see from this short bio, a Carl E. Mueller complained about Ofc. Boswell. These complaints and the brouhaha all about it appears in the personnel file. Below is part of his personnel file. I don’t think it is his whole file. And in it are letters from the a bunch of the people involved, including a handwritten letter from Ofc. Boswell. There is a racial element and the N-word is mentioned. I vaguely think it was Boswell who throws the N-word in, as he recalled his version of the conflict.

James Boswell Policeman 1895 1912 by Mm Inshaw on Scribd

1957 Church Survey- Mt. Zion Pentecostal Church

It’s Pentecost. Wear red and write about a Pentecostal church.

photo of property

Mt. Zion Pentecostal Church was and still is at 1112 N St NW. It was a tiny church in 1957, with just 70 members. It was and still is an African American church.

They did not provide any information about the professional make up of the congregation. But they did say that most of the membership lived outside of the Northwest Urban Renewal Area in other parts of the District of Columbia.

CS 40 Mt Zion Pentecostal by Mm Inshaw

1957 Church Survey- Tried Stone Church of Christ

Well, this is another church that no longer exists.

The Tried Stone Church of Christ in 1957 when the survey was done, was at 1217 5th St NW. That address no longer exists. It was on Square 513 and lots 813-815. Those do not exist. When I threw the address into Google, I got a spot where the Metropolitan Community Church sits at 474 Ridge St NW. it’s on a corner.

The survey sheet doesn’t reveal a lot of information about the church, except that it was a steeple church.

CS-41-Tried New Stone Churc… by Mm Inshaw

Black Home Owners of Truxton Circle: Garland E. Carr pt.2

Sorry for the delay. Stuff happened.

So Garland E. Carr was a co-owner of 1520 1st St NW, with his mother and sister in 1922. The Carrs do not appear in the 1920 nor the 1930 census. They owned the property between 1922 and 1935.

In 1918 Garland was a farmer living in North Carolina when he was placed (not sure if drafted) in the military. In 1919 he returned from France and the answer to how do you keep them on the farm after they’ve seen gay Paris, is you don’t.

On June 11th 1922 Garland did something and was listed as living at 29 Massachusetts Ave NW. So what happened was, Garland Carr, being a vet tried to claim disability. His claim was denied and he was very displeased. So displeased that he returned to the Veterans Bureau office that denied him and (I’m going to quote the Evening Star) “had bored a hole through a window sash and thrust burning paper into the building because, he said, his claim for disability was not allowed and he could not get no money from the bureau. The fire burned out when the paper was consumed.”

Garland Carr (center) arrested for trying to blow up Veterans Bureau, 6/21/22 SOURCE: Library of Congress. National Photo Company Collection.

I get why he did it. My mom was a vet and I remember her struggles with the VA. But it was still a crime. He may have spent a year in prison for it.

He may have spent a year in prison. He moved on with his life. During Word War II he was a self-employed contractor.

Black Home Owners of Truxton Circle: Garland E. Carr pt.1

Garland-E-Carr-June-21-1922 — African American Truxton Circle Property Owner- Garland E. Carr

I did not find Mr. Garland E. Carr via the Census, like I normally look for African American TC home owners. No, this one came to me via someone doing history at the National Archives looking at another topic of which Mr. Carr was involved. What Mr. Carr did I will wait until later to reveal.

A few months after this picture was snapped, his mother along with his sister Genevieve R. Patrick became owners of 1520 1st St NW. This was Square 552 lot 165.

Later in 1936 Elizabeth Carr sold it.

In my next post I’ll talk about what Mr. Carr did to have his picture taken.

1957 Church Survey- Rehoboth Church of God- Rando Church Near Shaw

The Rehoboth Church of God no longer exists in Washington DC. Nor does it’s 1957 address 1101 8th St NW. There is a convention center at that spot. So if it were still there it would be in Mt. Vernon Sq., next to Shaw. Really doesn’t matter as they did not provide much information to the 1957 Church Survey.

CS-42-Rehoboth Church of God by Mm Inshaw