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Deanwood in Northeast Washington in Washington, District of Columbia — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

From Gardens to Garden Apartments

A Self-Reliant People

— Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

 
 
From Gardens to Garden Apartments Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), July 4, 2019
1. From Gardens to Garden Apartments Marker
Inscription. Largely ignored by city officials and isolated from downtown DC, Deanwood remained semi-rural until around World War II (1941-1945).

Lifelong residents who grew up in the 1930s and '40s remember outsiders telling them that they lived in "the country." And in many ways they did, with gardens and laying hens in the yards of their handcrafted homes. Some residents rode horseback (often on animals purchased from Benning Racetrack) alongside the cars on Deanwood's dusty dirt roads. At least one resident continued boarding horses that competed at Laurel, Bowie, and Pimlico racetracks into the 1970s.

While most found peaceful Deanwood endearing, they also yearned for modern indoor plumbing and electricity. In the 1940s and '50s, the Northeast Boundary Civic Association and others finally persuaded city officials to build fully modern apartment complexes.

Suburban Gardens Apartments was one of those modernizing efforts. Begun in 1941, this 203-unit project to your right on the Jay Street ridge was designed by Harvey Warwick, an architect responsible for dozens of garden apartment complexes in the DC Metropolitan Area. The layout of the 13 two-story buildings included landscaped courtyards. These apartments opened during a severe citywide housing shortage that began when thousands came to help end the Great
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Depression and prepare for what became World War II. The development attracted middle-class, African American war workers. Former DC Mayor Sharon Pratt Dixon's parents, Mildred and Carlisle Pratt, were among them.
 
Erected 2009 by Cultural Tourism DC. (Marker Number 6.)
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African AmericansAgricultureArchitectureWar, World II. In addition, it is included in the Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1930.
 
Location. 38° 54.084′ N, 76° 55.891′ W. Marker is in Northeast Washington in Washington, District of Columbia. It is in Deanwood. Marker is at the intersection of Jay Street Northeast and 49th Street Northeast, on the right when traveling east on Jay Street Northeast. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 4901 Jay Street Northeast, Washington DC 20019, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A Whirl on the Ferris Wheel (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); With These Hands (about 800 feet away); From Rural to Residential (approx. 0.2 miles away); Lederer Gardens (approx. 0.2 miles away); Jacob Dodd-built Houses (approx. ¼ mile away); The School of the Three Bs
From Gardens to Garden Apartments Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), July 4, 2019
2. From Gardens to Garden Apartments Marker
(approx. ¼ mile away); National Training School for Women and Girls / Nannie Helen Burroughs (approx. ¼ mile away); Shopping on Sheriff (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Northeast Washington.
 
Also see . . .  Suburban Gardens Site, African American Heritage Trail. (Submitted on February 17, 2018, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.)
 
From Gardens to Garden Apartments Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), July 4, 2019
3. From Gardens to Garden Apartments Marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on January 30, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 23, 2017, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 274 times since then and 15 times this year. Last updated on March 7, 2019, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on July 4, 2019, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 28, 2024