Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail Historical Markers

By Allen C. Browne, May 7, 2017

A Day at the Picture Show Marker

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1 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 2 — A Day at the Picture Show — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail — Reported missing

The Two-Story Art Deco Style Building on your left was once the Strand Theater. Abe Lichtman, a Jewish businessman whose movie theaters catered to black patrons, opened the Strand in 1918. Lichtman also operated the Lincoln and Howard . . . — — Map (db m130777) HM

2 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 5 — A Whirl on the Ferris Wheel — A Self Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

To your right it is the former Merritt Educational Center which operated from 1943 to 2008. However, if you were standing here in the 1920s or '30s, in its place you would have seen exuberant crowds of fashionably dressed African Americans . . . — — Map (db m130780) HM

3 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 12 — Designed to Compete — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

This quaint frame building has served several church congregations since its construction in 1908. The First Zion Baptist Church stayed for more than 60 years. Since 1993 members of Joshua's Temple First Born Church have worshiped within its . . . — — Map (db m130784) HM

4 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 6 — From Gardens to Garden Apartments — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

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 . . . — — Map (db m130781) HM

5 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 11 — Shaping Strong Minds — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

In 1907, when Deanwood's African American children needed a school close to home, city officials decided to place a public elementary here. Snowden Ashford (1866-1927), the District's inspector of buildings, designed the original four-room . . . — — Map (db m158343) HM

6 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 9 — Shopping on Sheriff — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

Sheltered from the overt bigotry many African Americans experienced when venturing downtown, Deanwood shoppers of the 1950s patronized Sheriff Road's mostly African American businesses, including Mouse Gordon's tailor shop, Tip Top Grocery, . . . — — Map (db m130783) HM

7 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Deanwood — 8 — With These Hands — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

Up the hill to your left are several signature handcrafted houses, Beginning in the late 1800s, Deanwood attracted skilled black migrants, who freely passed on their know-how. In the 1920s Jacob and Randolph Dodd built about 50 structures . . . — — Map (db m153319) HM

8 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Hillbrook — 4 — From Rural to Residential — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

Deanwood once was farmland belonging to slave-holding families. Some of their names—Sherriff, Lowrie, and Benning--still mark local roads. In 1833 Levi Sherriff purchased several hundred acres along Watts Branch from William Benning's . . . — — Map (db m130778) HM

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9 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Hillbrook — 3 — The School of the Three Bs — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

Atop this hill are the sprawling grounds on which Nannie Helen Burroughs (1879-1961) founded the National Training School for Women and Girls in 1909. Burroughs was an outspoken advocate for women's rights, civil rights, and religious . . . — — Map (db m184992) HM

10 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Lincoln Heights — 1 — Watts Going On — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

Across the street is Watts Branch, an actively used creek that has tied together many communities. Unfortunately humans have not always been respectful of this resource. The stream has experienced cycles of neglect and rejuvenation. In . . . — — Map (db m130776) HM

11 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Mahaning Heights — 15 — "We're Not Forgotten" — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

Formerly known as the Bladensburg Piscataway Road, Minnesota Avenue has long served as an eastern gateway into Washington. Since the original wooden Benning Road Bridge across the Anacostia River was erected nearby in 1800, countless people . . . — — Map (db m136184) HM

12 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Mahaning Heights — 13 — “What Magic Has Been Wrought Here” — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

On, May 18,1966, crowds gathered here to witness Lady Bird Johnson (1912-2007) rededicate eight acres of Watts Branch Park. “No one more than the residents of this area knows what magic has been wrought here at Watts Branch,” observed . . . — — Map (db m130785) HM

13 ► District of Columbia, Washington, Northeast Washington, Mahaning Heights — 14 — From Gambling to Garden Apartments — A Self-Reliant People — Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —

If you had stood here 100 years ago, you might have heard the cheering crowds and thundering hoofbeats of Benning Racetrack just across the tracks to your right. Beginning in 1890, Benning was the best-equipped race course in Washington. . . . — — Map (db m130786) HM