Tag: neighborhood history

There are a lot of these houses. I’m just going to publish these in big batches.

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 happened with 1519 3rd St NW:

•  January 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold half of 1519 3rd St NW to Delores M. and Thomas L. Brock Jr.
• January 1951 the Brocks borrowed $3,525 from from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
•  January 1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sold the other half of 1519 3rd St NW to Gladys Banks and Robert S. McGee.
• January 1951 Banks and McGee borrowed $3,525 from from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• December 1953 the Brocks sold their half of 1519 3rd St NW back to Evans, Levin and Taube.
• March 1954 Banks and McGee lost their half of the property to foreclosure and Evans, Levin and Taube regained it via an auction.
• May 1954 Evans, Levin and Taube resold the foreclosed half to Bettie K. and Charles R. Williams Sr.
• May 1954 the Williams borrowed $4,153.41 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• May 1956 the Williams lost their half of the property to foreclosure. Evans, Taube and new partner Harry A. Badt regained ownership via an auction.
• May 1956 the Badts (Harry & wife) transferred their interest in this and other properties to Nathan Levin’s family (wife Rose, children Lawrence, Myron Levin and Ruth Wagman).
• November 1961, the Badts, the Evans, the Taubes, and Levin’s survivors sold this and other properties to Sophia and George Basiliko.
• At some point between 1971 and 1978 the DC Redevelopment Land Agency gained ownership of 1519 3rd St NW.

There are a lot of these houses. I’m just going to publish these in big batches this week.

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 look at 1511 3rd Street NW:

• December 1950 (recorded March 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold all of (not half) 1511 3rd St NW to Lillian and George Shaw.
• December 1950 December 1950 the Shaws borrowed $7,000 from Colonial Investment Co. trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• September 1953 the Shaws sold one-half interest in 1511 3rd St NW to Hertlee and Maggie A. Johnson.
• September 1953 the Johnsons borrowed $3,729.80 and $547.02  at 6% and 5% interest from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• September 1953 the Shaws sold their half interest in 1511 3rd St NW to Beulah and Theodore R. Jackson.
• September 1953 the Jacksons borrowed $3,729.80 at 6% interest and $547.02 at 6% from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• December 1961 the loan the Shaws agreed to in 1950 was foreclosed upon. It appears the Jacksons and the Johnsons were SOL and the property was regained by Evans, Taube and Levin’s survivors via an auction.
• November 1961, as part of a larger property package the Levin survivors, Evans and Taube and their wives sold 1511 3rd St to Sophia and George Basiliko.
• Sometime between 1971 and 1978 the District of Columbia Redevelopment Land Agency obtained ownership.

In the end a lot of properties wound up in the hands of the RLA.

There are a lot of these houses. I’m just going to publish these in big batches.

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 look at the post WSIC history of 200 Q St NW:

• December 1950 (recorded 1/18/51) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 200 Q St NW to Joseph and Mary E. Bailey.
• December 1950 (recorded 1/18/1951) the Baileys borrowed $3,375 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• December 1950 (recorded 1/18/51) Evans, Levin and Taube sold the other one-half of 200 Q St NW to James R. and Thelma L. Fields.
• December 1950 the Fields borrowed $3,375 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• January 1952 the Fields sold their half to the Consolidated Engineering Distributing Company.
• February 1952 the Consolidated Engineering Distributing Company sold the property to Mattie N. Jackson. The paperwork doesn’t seem to acknowledge it is only half of the property.
• 2/25/1952 Mattie N. Jackson borrowed $1475 from trustees J. George Gately and James J. Goreman Jr. at 5% interest.
• February 1959 the Bailey’s lost their property to foreclosure and via auction, it was returned to Evans, Taube and new partner Harry A. Badt.
• June 1959, as part of a larger package, Evans, Taube, Badt (and their wives) and Levin’s survivors sell their interest in 200 Q St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
• May 1970 Mattie N. Jackson sold her half to George Basiliko.

Basiliko did not wind up selling the house to RLA. Instead he sold it to the Bates Street Ventures Partnership in 1978. But then the Bates Street Ventures Partnership sold/transferred it back to Basiliko after the Board for the Condemnation of Insanitary Buildings condemned the building then uncondemned it. In 1984 Basiliko sold it to Florida Exclusive Properties…. this is  not Florida, nor in the 1980s were any of these exclusive. There are a mess of mechanics liens after that so I will end it here.

The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company built a number of homes in the Truxton Circle neighborhood in the late 19th and early 202th century. WSIC sold off a number of their rentals, with the idea of selling to African Americans.

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.

At 139 Bates St NW:

• December 1950 (recorded 1/18/1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold One-Half of 139 Bates St NW to joint tenants Palmer R. Berry and Joseph C. Coleman.
• December 1950 Berry and Coleman borrowed $2,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• December 1950 (recorded 1/18/1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold the other half of 139 Bates St NW to Alice L. Ferguson and Isaac H. Hodge.
• December 1950 Ferguson and Hodge borrowed $2,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• May 1953 Coleman and Berry lost their half to foreclosure and the property was returned to Evans, Levin and Taube.
• May 1953 Evans, Levin and Taube sold the half lost by Berry and Coleman to Willie and Margaret E. McCrimmon.
• May 1953 the McCrimmons borrowed $3,274.21 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• March 1958 the McCrimmons lost their half and it was returned to Evans, Levin and new partner Harry A. Badt.
• March 1958, as part of a larger property package, the Badts transfer interest of the property to Nathan Levin’s family.
• September 1959 Ferguson and Hodge lost their half of 139 Bates to foreclosure and ownership returned to Evans, Levin and Harry A. Badt.
• September 1959, as part of a larger property package, the Badts transferred interest of the property to Nathan Levin’s family.
• November 1961, as part of a larger property package, Evans, Badt, their wives and the Levin family sold their interest in 139 Bates St NW to Sophia and George Basiliko.
• July 1970 Basiliko sold the property to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency.

So this address had fit the pattern of properties being sold then those buyers losing their homes to foreclosure and then the property winding up in the hands of a man whom the Washington Post called a slum lord. Because of the way he handled his rentals he was forced/pressured to sell many of his Bates Street properties.

 

The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company built a number of homes in the Truxton Circle neighborhood in the late 19th and early 20th century. WSIC sold off a number of their rentals.

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 starting in 1951. 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 look at 38 O St NW:

• 3/19/1951 Evans, Levin, Taube sell half of 38 O St NW to Kanie and Beulah Pendarvis
• 3/19/1951 the Pendarvis borrow $3,125 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• 4/20/1951 Evans, Levin, Taube sell the other half of 38 O St NW to Joseph E and Gladys V. Dorsey.
• 4/20/1951 the Dorseys borrow $3,125 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• July 1956 (recorded in October) the Pendarvis lost their half to foreclosure and that part of the property returned to Evans and Taube and new partner Harry A. Badt.
• 1958 The Badts transfer their interest to Nathan Levin’s family as part of a larger property package.
• 8/5/1959 the Evans, Taubes, Levin family, and Badts sell half of the property to Sophia and George Basiliko, as part of a larger property package.
• March 1951 (recorded in October) the Dorseys paid off their loan and own their half free and clear.
• November 1976 Joseph E and Gladys V. Dorsey sell/transfer their half of the property to Alvin L. Dorsey.
• April 1978 Basiliko sells his half of the property to Albert James Paul Jr.
• April 1978 Paul borrows $6K from trustees Leonard C Collings and Richard L. Sugarman.
• February 1989 Albert James Jr and Joyce A. Robinson-Paul (same as the Green Party candidate?) buy the other half of 38 O St NW from Alvin and Elizabeth A. Dorsey.

It appears Basiliko was not forced to sell this property to DC RLA and the whole house eventually belonged to the current owners.

 

The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a rental entity that built a number of homes in the Truxton Circle neighborhood in the late 19th and early 20th century. Around 1950, they sold off their inventory to Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. In an Evening Star article regarding the end of WSIC, the new owners expressed their intention to sell the rentals to Black home buyers. Some of those sales worked out okay and others, not so much.

There was a pattern I noticed and so let’s look at the what happens from the sale from Evans, Levin and Taube to buyers. Sometimes it ends up in the hands of landlord George Basiliko or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency or freedom.

• 1/26/1951 Evans, Levin and Taube sell One-Half of 14 Bates St NW to Thomas J. and Julia T. Harp.
• 1/26/1951 the Harps borrow $3,000 from Evans, Levin and Taube’s lender, trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• 1/26/1951  Evans, Levin and Taube sell the remaining One-Half interest of 14 Bates St NW to John A. and Dora Elizabeth Hawkins.
• 1/26/1951 the Hawkins borrow $3,000 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
• 4/07/1960 the Hawkins lose their home to foreclosure and ownership returns to Evans and Taube and new partner Harry A. Badt.
• 5/18/1960 Badt sells/transfers interest in the property to Ruth Wagman, and Lawrence, Myron and Rose Levin.
• 1/5/1962 That half interest is sold as part of a larger package to Sophia and George Basiliko.
• 11/30/1967 the Harps are released from their debt.
• 12/09/1971 the Harps and Basiliko sell 14 Bates St NW to the District of Columbia Redevelopment Land Agency.

I wonder if the Harps sold willingly or were forced to sell their home.

The Harps were African American. In the 1950 census Thomas and Julia lived at 2651 Nichols(?) Ave Apt D in DC with their 4 year old daughter Thomasine. He worked in a cafeteria and she worked as a clerk for the Navy department.