Posts by Kimberly Bender — Guest Contributor
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Four Black men developed a Montgomery County suburb to provide a better life for some in their community. They received something very different in return.
In 1906, four African American men attempted to develop an elite suburb for African Americans along Wisconsin Avenue between Chevy Chase and Friendship Heights, Maryland. Despite facing intense hostility from adjacent white landowners, at least 28 people bought lots. However, their vision was ultimately undone using subtler methods, showing how nominally race-blind tools can serve racist ends. Keep reading…
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Four Black men developed a Montgomery County suburb to provide a better life for some in their community. They received something very different in return.
In 1906, four African American men attempted to develop an elite suburb for African Americans along Wisconsin Avenue between Chevy Chase and Friendship Heights, Maryland. Despite facing intense hostility from adjacent white landowners, at least 28 people bought lots. However, their vision was ultimately undone using subtler methods, showing how nominally race-blind tools can serve racist ends. Keep reading…
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Hidden tunnels, bugs, and bigamy
In May of 1917, while working on the foundation for the luxurious Pelham Courts apartments in Dupont Circle, workers made an unusual discovery - a mysterious tunnel made of brick. But, who built it, and why? Turns out this was only the beginning of the story. Keep reading…
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Meet me down in Pipetown — DC’s neighborhoods in 1877
By now, most Washingtonians have heard of Swampoodle, the historic Irish neighborhood that was destroyed by the construction of Union Station. But what about The Island? Pipetown? Bloody Hill? These were all names of Washington, DC neighborhoods during the decades of the 1800s following the end of the Civil War. Keep reading…
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An unusual river of slime runs beneath Constitution Avenue
How is Washington, DC like this scene from Ghostbusters 2? Like the fictionalized residents of New York City in 1989, most present-day Washingtonians are unaware that an unusual river of slime runs beneath their city. (But ours is not paranormal). Here’s the story. Keep reading…
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The other Schneider: Q Street builder’s murderous brother
No discussion or debate about DC’s Height Act is complete without mention of T.F. Schneider’s Cairo Apartment Building on Q Street NW. The 1894 construction of the gorgeous building was the catalyst for the building height restrictions we know and love today. It is fortuitous for Schneider that the building caused such an impression. He’s lucky that… Keep reading…
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Meet me down in Pipetown: DC’s neighborhoods in 1877
By now, most Washingtonians have heard of Swampoodle, the historic Irish neighborhood that was destroyed by the construction of Union Station. But what about The Island? Pipetown? Bloody Hill and Bloodfield (“the ancient feudal ground of the southwest”)? These were all names of Washington, DC neighborhoods during the decades of the 1800s following the end of… Keep reading…
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A river of slime runs under Constitution Avenue
How is Washington, DC like this scene from Ghostbusters 2? Like the fictionalized residents of New York City in 1989, most present-day Washingtonians are unaware that an unusual river of slime runs beneath their city. (But ours is not paranormal). Here’s the story. Keep reading…
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Hidden tunnels, bugs, and bigamy
One of my favorite things about historic research is that no matter how strange or intriguing a story is at first, I really have no idea where a little digging might take me. Sometimes a lead just fizzles out. But sometimes what I discover is more bizarre and ridiculous than I could have imagined… In May of 1917, while working on the foundation for the luxurious Pelham Courts… Keep reading…