Alley Life in SE

"Cushing Place" - many people have probably driven by that alley and thought it was just another side street in DC or maybe they read about in JD's post about crime in SE and the murders that took place there.  But going back to around the turn of the century "Cushing Place" was one of the few occupied alley dwellings in SE (south of the freeway - Navy Place was larger and more notorious which eventually morphed into the Ellen Wilson Housing Projects) along with "Dick's Court and Mechanic Place."

     Cushing Place, which was located between L and M St SE and First and Half St SE was mentioned as one of those alleys that escaped demolition even as parts of SE improved at the turn of the century.   Cushing place, as described in the book Neglected Neighbors, in 1905 was an area "surrounded by by weed-grown, vacant lots, this open alley, developed before its time, is like a giant, ugly caterpillar not yet encode in chrysalis form.  The seven two-story wooden dwellings of "Cushing Place" look out towards Half Street across a vacant area about which the neighbors raise complaint.  They say the earth was taken out for use by the brickyard nearby and that water stands in the depression, stagnant, ill-smelling and breeding place for malarial mosquitoes.  Next to this the chief cause of dissatisfaction is the garbage collector whose infrequent collector whose infrequent calls are said to excuse the tenants for throwing refuse out upon the vacant lots.  There are only wooden box toilets in this alley.  The row of dwellings is ancient and weatherbeaten in appearance.  Their inner walls are spoken of as "smoked and dirty."  Four leaking roofs are reported out of the five houses entered."  As the author noted in 1908 upon a follow-up visit, some cosmetic maintenance had been performed to ward off demolished but basically the alley dwellings looked as though they did in 1905.

     "Dick's Court" which was made up of three one-story frame houses was tucked in behind a public school between M and N St and 3rd and 4th St SE - that public school was McCormick School.  Also in the vicinity of Dick's Court was Mechanic Place.  Mechanic Place was significantly larger and contained 67 residents which were all white.  Apparently not all of the residents of Dick's Court spent their lives in poverty.  According to the author, one the residents of the alley was an "inventor and Knight Templar."  Two other resident pointed out by the author was a woman who devised a double who was to blame for all her troubles and a third woman who, "having apparently worn away the glamour of the marriage ceremony by using it frequently, had subsequently attached herself to another man without the bother of a legal process.  In short, the usual alley standards were as apparent here, among the white folks, as elsewhere in colored alleys."  The conditions of the dwelling in both Dick's Court and Mechanic Place were just as squalid as Cushing Place and other alleys around Washington DC.  In Dick's Court, the only privies were wooden toilet boxes which contained a roof but were without cover in the front and were lined with wood and dirt.  As with other alleys, water had to be carried in from long distances since there were no hydrants or running water within the alleys.  By 1908, the author noted that the alleys were vacant even though the dwellings remained.  The author also took note of the close proximity to the McCormick School, "...intimate proximity to the McCormick public school suggests dual standard of public education.  That is, though the housing conditions which it tolerates the community often permits the teachings of its educational institutions to be undermined."  While it doesn't say when these alleys were ultimately razed, it is probably a safe bet to say they were razed along with McCormick School as the Navy Yard expanded westward.

     Not every "alley" in Washington DC was occupied or lived in but a lot were - especially in SW but with the "urban renewal" no real alleys remain.  However, in SE one alley that still retains some of the characteristics (layout of the alley) from the early 1900 is "Ruppert's Row."  Ruppert's Row can be visited by entering the alley on 3rd St between C St and PA Ave SE.  While the alley has been modified over the years you may be able to get a feel of the isolation the residents endured and how whole communities could develop in the alleys.

Note:  After doing research on "Cushing Place" I tried to find out why the alley and today's street had the name Cushing.  D.C. had an association with three famous Cushings since the late 1700s:  Civil War hero CDR William Cushing, U.S. Attorney General Caleb Cushing and Supreme Court Justice William Cushing.  The book "George Washington Never Slept Here," states that the alley was named after Attorney General Caleb Cushing.   The problem I feel is that the author just assumed that both Cushing Places NW and SE were named after the same Cushing.  I have been unable to determine if that is in fact true but my belief is that Cushing Place SE was named after CDR Cushing who served as Executive Office of the Navy Yard.  NW DC just seemed like a more fitting place to name a street after an attorney general rather a starting to be run-down SE DC.  Plus with a Civil War hero stationed near by - it would make sense to name a street near the Navy Yard after him rather than an Attorney General.

Va Ave Tunnel Part 1a: Next Few Updates

After reading JD's page it appears there are a lot of arm-chair lawyers and some real lawyers out there digging for the legislation of the VA Ave Tunnel.  In Part 1, I  provided two dates about the approval of the tunnel but didn't go any further and I didn't really want to but since there is some interest out there I'll go that route.  Part 2 will really be nothing more than posting articles that talk about the right of way and approval of the tunnels (Va Ave and 1st St).  Part 3 will talk about the Navy Yard Tunnel (where you can still a piece of those rails), construction of the Va Ave Tunnel along with some cool pictures of both tunnels and maybe some articles relating to the construction.  Part 4 is gonna be my favorite because I have come across a ton of articles (okay maybe a few) of early DC residents complaining about the train whistles - 'Trains waking babies on Capitol Hill since the 1880s' or 'Capitol Hill residents complaining about trains since the 1880s'.  The complaining started in the 1880s and its still happening today with one of the latest complaints bing verbalized by ANC6B Commissioner Neil Glick.  According to Mr. Glick the train whistles have gotten louder the last couple of years (would love to see how you prove that since inversions, temperature and prevailing wind direction all combine to help make the whistle louder or softer - plus you have the train conductor's mood when he blows the horn) but not all the whistles come from CSX trains - so don't blame every whistle you hear on CSX - Amtrak is out there blowing too.  Legislation.  I'm not a lawyer, I'll never pretend to be one, not a fan of them except the one I'm dating so I'll keep this to the old articles.....

McCormick School

The first school to 'experiment' with summer school within Washington D.C. was located right here in Near-SE but you won't find it standing today.  That first school was McCormick School which was located at 3rd between M and N St SE just north of today's Yards Park.  Prior to the construction of McCormick School, a public tobacco inspection station occupied the site.

McCormick School was built in 1870 and eventually became the test bed for summer school within the Washington D.C. school system in 1899.  The Washington Post reported that the summer school experiment was in fact a success and summer school was expanded throughout the District..  However, by 1906, due to decreasing budgets the school fell into disrepair, “The McCormick School in Southeast Washington is said to be in a dilapidated and unhealthy condition. It is a two-story frame structure with poor sewage and ventilation and plumbing and its quarters are inadequate to accommodate the number of school children living in the area."  The school did manage to stay open for a few years later but in limited capacity and eventually the school was razed as the Navy Yard continued its westward expansion.