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The Strivers' Section Historic District is a
historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...
located in the
Dupont Circle Dupont Circle is a historic roundabout park and Neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., neighborhood of Washington, D.C., located in Northwest (Washington, D.C.), Northwest D.C. The Dupont Circle neighborhood is bounded approximately by 16th St ...
neighborhood of
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
Strivers' Section was historically an enclave of upper-middle-class
African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
, often community leaders, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It takes its name from a turn-of-the-20th-century writer who described the district as "the Striver's section, a community of
Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...
aristocracy." The name echoes that of Strivers' Row in
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...
, a
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
historic neighborhood of black professionals. The district is roughly bounded by Swann Street and the Dupont Circle Historic District on the south,
Florida Avenue Florida Avenue is a major street in Washington, D.C. It was originally named Boundary Street, because it formed the northern boundary of the Federal City under the 1791 L'Enfant Plan. With the growth of the city beyond its original borders, B ...
and the Washington Heights Historic District on the north and west, and the
Sixteenth Street Historic District The Sixteenth Street Historic District is a linear Historic districts in the United States, historic district in Washington, D.C., that includes all structures along 16th Street NW between H Street (Washington, D.C.), H Street and Florida Avenue. ...
on the east. The historic district is mostly composed of apartment buildings and rowhouses. Notable inhabitants have included
Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 14, 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He was the most impor ...
, Lewis Henry Douglass, and Calvin Brent. Architectural styles represented in Strivers' Section include
Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...
, Queen Anne,
Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...
, and Second Empire. Architects and real estate developers whose works are in the district include George S. Cooper, Thomas Franklin Schneider, B. Stanley Simmons, Harry Wardman, and Frank Russell White. The historic district, which includes around 430 contributing properties, was added to the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites in 1983 and listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1985.


Geography

The Strivers' Section Historic District is in the north end of
Dupont Circle Dupont Circle is a historic roundabout park and Neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., neighborhood of Washington, D.C., located in Northwest (Washington, D.C.), Northwest D.C. The Dupont Circle neighborhood is bounded approximately by 16th St ...
, a historic district and neighborhood in the
northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west— ...
quadrant of
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
The boundaries of the historic district are roughly Swann Street and the Dupont Circle Historic District on the south,
Florida Avenue Florida Avenue is a major street in Washington, D.C. It was originally named Boundary Street, because it formed the northern boundary of the Federal City under the 1791 L'Enfant Plan. With the growth of the city beyond its original borders, B ...
and the Washington Heights Historic District on the north and west, and the
Sixteenth Street Historic District The Sixteenth Street Historic District is a linear Historic districts in the United States, historic district in Washington, D.C., that includes all structures along 16th Street NW between H Street (Washington, D.C.), H Street and Florida Avenue. ...
on the east. In addition to Florida Avenue, major roads that pass through the district are 17th Street, 18th Street,
New Hampshire Avenue New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...
, and U Street. There are about 430 contributing properties in the historic district, built between 1875 and 1946. Around 50 buildings, including the DC Police's Third District headquarters, are non-contributing. Contributing properties in the district include Old Engine Company No. 9 and these apartment buildings: The Albemarle, The Belgrade, The Kirkman, The Livingston, The Melwood, The Saint Clair, The Vernon, Willard Courts, The Wilton, and The Windermere-Harrowgate.


History


19th century

The present-day historic district was envisioned as part of the capital city by
Pierre Charles L'Enfant Pierre "Peter" Charles L'Enfant (; August 2, 1754June 14, 1825) was a French-American artist, professor, and military engineer. In 1791, L'Enfant designed the baroque-styled plan for the development of Washington, D.C., after it was designated ...
's 1791
plan A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an Goal, objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a modal logic, temporal set (mathematics), set of intended actions through wh ...
, but the area remained rural and undeveloped for several decades. Holmead's Burying Ground was established in 1794 and for almost 100 years operated as a public cemetery on the southwestern border of today's Strivers' Section. The bodies were later reinterned at other cemeteries in the city. Widow's Mite, later known as Oak Lawn, was an estate located on the western edge of the district on the site of the present-day Washington Hilton. By 1852, plans were drawn up for 11 squares subdivided by streets and alleys, but the rural landscape remained largely uninhabited except for scattered frame houses and shanties occupied by working-class people. The first sign of development in the district's vicinity was the construction of military camps during the
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
. One of these camps, Camp Barker, was located near 14th and U Streets. It served as a haven for
African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
during the war and along with two other camps, developed into neighborhoods for the city's African American residents. During the Civil War the Washington and Georgetown Company's horse-drawn
streetcar line A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include segment ...
opened along 14th Street and spurred development in the area. Seeing the potential for real estate in close proximity to the streetcar line, developers purchased parcels of land in the area which at the time was owned by one person. One of these developers was Henry A. Willard who founded the
Willard Hotel The Willard InterContinental Washington, commonly known as the Willard Hotel, is a historic luxury Beaux-Arts hotel located at 1401 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Downtown Washington, D.C. It is currently a member of Historic Hotels of America, th ...
. A street named after him runs through the center of the historic district. In the early 1870s, Alexander "Boss" Shepherd, then head of the city's Board of Public Works, led a massive improvement in the city's street layout, including in the Strivers' Section. More than 150 houses were built in the area between 1873 and 1875, transforming a rural part of the city to an active residential neighborhood. These original buildings, some of which were later demolished, included simple frame dwellings and larger, more elaborate homes. Surviving examples include Italianate buildings on 17th Street, Seaton Street, and T Street. Early residents included working-class people and professionals, African Americans and whites, but the area became most strongly identified with the African American middle class and elites who were attracted by public transit and nearby
Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...
. One of these early residents was writer and statesman
Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 14, 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He was the most impor ...
, who purchased three Second Empire-style homes on the corner of 17th and U Streets in 1877 as a real estate investment. Douglass's son Lewis lived at 2002 17th Street NW for more than 30 years. James E. Storum, who founded the Capital Savings Bank, lived next door. The earnings Frederick Douglass received from these real estate ventures, along with his writings and speaking engagements, ensured his financial security during retirement at Cedar Hill. More development was spurred by the 1893 arrival of the Rock Creek Railway Company's electric streetcar service along U Street. The following two decades saw the construction of more than half of the historic district's buildings, including the prominent Old Engine Company No. 9 and rows of mostly Queen Anne-style houses. The neighborhood demographics also began a gradual shift from almost exclusively African American to a mixture that included middle-class whites. Although they lived in close proximity, both races generally lived on specific streets in the neighborhood and rarely socialized with each other .


20th century

Most of the residential buildings constructed in the early 1900s were larger and catered to the middle class. Inhabitants included the city's
Recorder of Deeds Recorder of deeds or deeds registry is a government office tasked with maintaining public records and documents, especially records relating to real estate ownership that provide persons other than the owner of a property with real rights ove ...
James C. Dancy and Howard University faculty member Joseph Lealand Johnson, the second African American to earn both a Ph.D. and an
M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...
Architect Calvin Brent, who lived at 1700 V Street NW, is best known for his St. Luke's Episcopal Church, but he also designed the house next door, 1704 V Street NW. The row of
Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...
houses along the north side of the 1700 block of U Street were built in 1902 and designed by architect Nicholas T. Haller, one of several prominent local architects whose designs are represented in the historic district. George S. Cooper, Albert H. Beers, William C. Allard, Thomas M. Haislip, Nicholas D. Grimm, and Louis D. Meline are some of the architects who designed houses along Florida Avenue, 17th Street, T Street, U Street, V Street, and Willard Street. The residential buildings constructed during this period also included apartments, several of which are small and resemble rowhouses, and medium-sized buildings including: The Saint Clair at 1717 T Street NW, designed by Cooper in 1903, The Wilton at 1931 17th Street NW, designed by Beers in 1908, and The Livingston at 1741-43 T Street NW, designed by Hunter & Bell in 1917. The large apartment buildings were constructed on more prominent lots. Examples include: The Albemarle at 1830 17th Street NW, designed by Thomas Franklin Schneider in 1900, The Melwood and The Vernon at 1768 and 1774 U Street NW, designed by B. Stanley Simmons in 1906, The Belgrade and The Kirkman at 1918 and 1930 18th Street NW, designed by Beers and built by Harry Wardman in 1908, and Willard Courts, designed by Frank Russell White and built by Wardman in 1915. There were a few large apartment buildings constructed during the 1920s including The New Williamsburg at 1621 T Street NW, designed by Stern & Tomlinson in 1925 in the
Classical Revival Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassic ...
style, and The Windermere-Harrowgate at 1825 and 1833 New Hampshire Avenue NW, also designed by Stern and Tomlinson in 1925 in the
Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture, also known as mock Tudor in the UK, first manifested in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in rea ...
style. Commercial properties built during this period include 1610 U Street NW, constructed in 1921 for American Motor Schools and designed by Appleton P. Clark Jr. By the 1920s, U Street between 7th and 17th Streets featured numerous African American businesses and entertainment venues while Dupont Circle remained an almost exclusively white neighborhood. The demographics of the Strivers' Section once again changed during this decade, from a mixed-race community to a mostly middle-class African American one. It was during this decade when the area earned its nickname. Strivers' Section was originally a derisive term that described neighborhoods where African Americans had purchased homes from white residents. These people were supposedly "striving to get beyond members of their own race." But the term Strivers' Section was reclaimed as a positive description by people including social historian William Henry Jones, who praised "negro pioneers" that didn't limit themselves to segregated areas of the city. White residents on the neighborhood's southern border created a racially restrictive covenant that blocked African Americans and
Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
from living on their streets. This was challenged in courts, but the covenants were ruled legal. Many of the African Americans who continued to live in Strivers' Section during this period were prominent members of their community, but in certain areas such as Seaton Street, poor residents struggled.
Gordon Parks Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks (November 30, 1912 – March 7, 2006) was an American photographer, composer, author, poet, and filmmaker, who became prominent in U.S. documentary photojournalism in the 1940s through 1970s—particularly ...
photographed Seaton Street and its residents to demonstrate the effects poverty and racism had on the community. After racial covenants were ruled unconstitutional in the 1948 Supreme Court case '' Shelley v. Kraemer'', African American residents of Strivers' Section were no longer limited to which neighborhoods they could live in and began to move to other areas of the city. During the next decades poverty and crime became a serious issue in Strivers' Section, made worse by the devastation following the
1968 riots 1968 riots may refer to: * Protests of 1968, worldwide escalation of social conflicts * Orangeburg Massacre, February 8, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, South Carolina * King assassination riots, April and May, across the United States ...
. Although some historic buildings were demolished in the following decades, including ones on U Street that were replaced with the DC Police's Third District headquarters in 1974, most of the
urban renewal Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...
plans that would have dramatically changed the neighborhood's appearance did not take place. In the early 1980s, four Dupont Circle neighborhood organizations sought to expand the Dupont Circle Historic District's boundaries to include Strivers' Section, but the Joint Committee on Landmarks chose to designate the latter as its own historic district. The Strivers' Section Historic District was added to the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites on June 30, 1983, and listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
on February 6, 1985. Prominent African Americans who lived just beyond the historic district's boundaries included poets
Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. An early innovator of jazz poetry, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harl ...
and Georgia Douglas Johnson, educator Lucy Diggs Slowe, military officer Benjamin O. Davis Sr., opera singer Todd Duncan, attorney Charles Hamilton Houston, civil rights activist Dutton Ferguson who challenged
segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of human ...
on U Street, and ophthalmologist Arthur Curtis and his wife Helen who were the subjects of the '' Corrigan v. Buckley'' Supreme Court case that involved racially restrictive covenants. Since the designation of the historic district, the restoration of buildings in the district and the development spurred by the opening of Metro's U Street station has led to a diverse population residing in Strivers' Section.


See also

*
African-American neighborhood African-American neighborhoods or black neighborhoods are types of ethnic enclaves found in many cities in the United States. Generally, an African American neighborhood is one where the majority of the people who live there are African American ...
* List of African-American historic places in the District of Columbia * National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington, D.C.


References


External links


Strivers' Section Historic District
District of Columbia Office of Planning {{Registered Historic Places African-American history of Washington, D.C. African-American middle class African-American upper class District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites Strivers Ethnic enclaves in Washington, D.C. Frederick Douglass Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. Neighborhoods in Northwest (Washington, D.C.) Upper class culture in Washington, D.C.