Black History Month 2024: Exploring the Black Roots of the U Street Corridor and Shaw Neighborhood

DC history is Black history, and Black History Month is rooted in Shaw, the neighborhood where Carter G. Woodson studied, wrote and advocated. From incredible art and culture to go-go music, to many “firsts” in the federal government – you cannot go anywhere in DC without being somewhere heavily influenced by the Black community – and you can do no better than starting in Shaw. To celebrate Black History Month, our team visited a few of our most historic sites and reflected on how DC’s legacy of Black leadership has shaped our neighborhoods from past to present.   

The exterior of Florida Avenue Grill.

Florida Avenue Grill  

At midday, there is no better way to start than with Florida Avenue Grill’s famous hot cakes. As “the oldest soul food restaurant in the world,” Florida Avenue Grill has been in DC for 80 years and has withstood numerous obstacles including the 1968 riots which broke out after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Since then, one of The Grill’s most coveted booths is the one some say MLK Jr. sat in while planning the March on Washington. Florida Avenue Grill is also noted within LISC as the venue where Bob Moore and community leaders crafted a plan in the 90’s to renovate 78 vacant row houses in DC, a critical moment in LISC’s legacy. 

The exterior of the Whitelaw building.

The Whitelaw Hotel  

Later that afternoon, we visited the historic Whitelaw hotel, located on 13th and T Streets NW. Young children played and laughed in front of the building and its white banner commemorating 100 years of the Whitelaw, a milestone that was celebrated in 2019.  

The family out front invited LISC staff back into the Whitelaw during our tour, allowing us to spend time in the grand common room of commemorative plaques which has the original stained-glass windows, rescued and stored by a neighbor when the building was abandoned, but restored for all to appreciate.

Built in 1919, the Whitelaw was the city’s first luxury hotel for African Americans and served as a community gathering space. In the spirit of the Ujamaa principle*, the hotel was built and financed by, and for the Black community. Located in The U Street Corridor, a historically Black neighborhood once regarded as “Black Broadway,” the hotel was frequented by famous Jazz musicians such as Duke Ellington, who lived on the same block. 

The stained glass windows in the Whitelaw's common room.

As a result of disinvestment in the 1960s, the Whitelaw fell into disrepair. In 1977, the city ordered the building to close and a fire destroyed the roof and upper floors. The building sat vacant for over a decade and a half and, notably, a tree grew up and through the structure. 

At the time, only MANNA, a long-time LISC affordable housing partner, would tackle the project. LISC recognized the potential of the building in supporting revitalization efforts in the area and played a significant role in the original redevelopment of the hotel. Through our affiliate, the National Equity Fund (NEF), we syndicated the tax credits for the project, which was the first LIHTC project sponsored by a non-profit organization in the District of Columbia. We also provided a $250,000 bridge loan. MANNA relied on LIHTC and the city’s purchase of the land through the Land Acquisition for Housing Development Opportunities (LAHDO) program, along with other sources, to redevelop the building into 35 units of affordable housing. In 1992, thirty-five families moved into the building. LISC supported MANNA throughout the preservation of the Whitelaw, providing a $140,000 loan in 1999 to help stabilize the project. After the tax credits expired in 2007 and 2008, we refinanced the Whitelaw, effectively extending its legacy to the present. 

Young children playing in the Thurgood Marshall Center's gym over a decade ago, when the building was restored.

The Former 12th Street YMCA 

After visiting the African American Civil War Memorial, the team was in search of more history as the African American Civil War Memorial Museum’s indoor exhibit is undergoing renovations. Despite the rain drizzle and our lowered expectations after learning the museum was closed, we continued. Adorned by a Thurgood Marshall quote and historical marker, the building formerly known as the 12th Street YMCA/Anthony Bowen YMCA** sits at 1826 12th St NW, south of the U Street Corridor.  

Founded by Anthony Bowen in 1853, the 12th Street YMCA was the first African-American YMCA in the United States. The building was designed by African-American architect William Sydney Pittman and served as a haven for young African-American men who competed in the gym, studied in the library, and learned from successful African-American citizens in the meeting rooms. Like the Whitelaw Hotel, the YMCA was frequented by prominent figures such as Langston Hughes, who was renting a room there when he began publishing his poetry. It was in this YMCA that a young Thurgood Marshall and his mentor Charles H. Houston crafted many of the legal strategies of the civil rights movement. Legendary Georgetown coach John Thompson refined his skills at the Y as well. 

In 1982, the YMCA closed as a result of declining membership and financial difficulties. Three community organizations – The Shaw Heritage Trust, MANNA, and For Love of Children (FLOC) – organized to form Anthony Bowen Landmark Building Trust, Inc. and acquire the building. In the latter half of the 1990s, LISC DC provided financing for the restoration of the building which is now the Thurgood Marshall Center for Service and Heritage.  

LISC DC Team and historic interpreter Marquett Milton. From left to right: Ashley Rosado (LISC Asst. Program Officer); Ramon Jacobson (LISC DC Executive Director); Bryan Franklin (LISC DC Deputy Director); Marquett Milton (Historic Interpreter); Melanie Stern (LISC Senior Program Officer).

Today, the inside of the building is a living piece of Black history. One room remains as it was for guests from past days, and the woodwork retains grandeur, while the basketball court is a timepiece. Art and photos line the walls, from civil rights leaders to artists like Beyoncé. Community organizations, such as Ethiopian Community Services, operate out of the building similarly to the way community groups organized decades ago.  

Our team was lucky enough to have an impromptu tour and history lesson from Marquett Milton, a Historic Interpreter with the African American Civil War Memorial Museum. Milton guided us in full Civil War regalia. It is important to learn more about Black history in our neighborhoods but to also realize that the legacies of these monumental leaders continue to be carried forward today by local organizations and activists amidst gentrification and racial inequities.  

LISC DC is in its 42nd year in Washington, D.C. and we are lucky to have worked alongside trailblazers and have our work imbedded in so many historically significant projects and neighborhoods. The lessons we’ve learned, the communities we live in, and the residents and leaders we listen to continue to guide our path forward to a more equitable and just D.C. 

Artwork and photographs in the Thurgood Marshall Center for Service and Heritage.

*Ujamma Principle: The fourth principle of Kwanzaa which represents cooperative economics. It reads, “To build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.” 

**Note: Some historical information for the 12th Street YMCA was obtained from the National Park Service.