Bloomingdale in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Great Expectations
Worthy Ambition
— LeDroit Park/Bloomingdale Heritage Trail —
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 23, 2017
Bloomingdale of the 1940s and '50s was a village of high expectations. Within a block of this sign lived four young women who grew up to be judges.
Anna Diggs Taylor rose to chief judge of the U.S. District Court in Michigan. The daughter of Howard University's first black treasurer Virginius D. Johnston, Taylor was best known for her 2006 ruling that wiretapping citizens without a warrant is unconstitutional. Alice Gail Pollard (later Clark) was the first black District Court judge in Howard County, Maryland. Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Norma Holloway Johnson famously oversaw the 1998 grand jury investigation into President Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky. As a girl, Johnson left Louisiana to live with a Randolph Place relative so she could attend DC's prestigious Dunbar High School.
Retired DC Court of Appeals Chief Judge Annice Wagner, who grew up nearby on First Street, remembered a neighborhood filled with homes and offices of black professionals. "We believed that we could become doctors, lawyers, and teachers," she said, "because we observed their achievements and they encouraged us."
Chief Justice of Tennessee's Supreme Court Adolpho Birch, Jr., a Dunbar graduate, grew up in the nearby St. George's Episcopal Church parsonage as the son of the church's first rector.
Physician and public health advocate Dorothy Ferebee lived at 1809 Second Street. In 1929 Dr. Ferebee opened Southeast Neighborhood House to provide health and social services in Anacostia. Later she organized the Mississippi Health Project, bringing Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority volunteers to staff mobile clinics for tenant farmers. At home, she presided over the National Council of Negro Women and directed Howard University's health services.
Erected 2015 by Cultural Tourism DC. (Marker Number 14.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Churches & Religion • Science & Medicine • Women. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #42 William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton, the Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the LeDroit Park/Bloomingdale Heritage Trail series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1998.
Location. Marker has been reported missing. It was located near 38° 54.803′ N, 77° 0.839′ W. Marker was in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia. It was in Bloomingdale. Marker was at the intersection of Randolph Place Northwest and 2nd Street Northwest
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 23, 2017
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location. Barnett Aden Gallery (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Home to Headliners (about 500 feet away); The Prettiest Place (about 500 feet away); Elks Columbia Lodge No. 85 (approx. 0.2 miles away); DC and the Development of the International Bear Brotherhood Flag (approx. 0.2 miles away); Anna Julia Hayward Cooper Residence (approx. 0.2 miles away); Dividing Line (approx. 0.2 miles away); A Voice from the South (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Northwest Washington.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 23, 2017
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), February 22, 2020
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 290 times since then and 21 times this year. Last updated on March 8, 2019, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 23, 2017, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. 4. submitted on February 22, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.