This Month
4 History in Your Own
Backyard
7 Congress Market: A
Hundred Years of
Groceries
9 Eastern Market: A
Hill Ritual
12 The Fleishells: Eight
Generations on
Capitol Hill
14 An Interv i ew with
Adele Alexander
D e p a rt m e n t s
Vo i c e M a i l . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Ask Judith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 0
Spencer Say s. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 1
Business Bits . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 2
Business Serv i c e s. . . . . . . .2 6
D o w n L o a d. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 8
Capital Kids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 4
Kids’ Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . .3 8
Community Calendar . . . .4 0
In The Stars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 0
C l a s s i f i e d s. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 2
Vol. 1 No. 10 January 21 2000
o f
T h e
H i l l
A century of serv i n g
up the necessities of
l i fe on Capitol Hill.
A century of serv i n g
up the necessities of
l i fe on Capitol Hill.
I AM IN FAVOR OF ST. COLETTA ON THE HILL.
NAME:_________________________________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS: _____________________________________________________________________________________
COMMENTS:___________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
c Dear Capitol Hill Friends and Neighbors,
All of us at St. Coletta School are excited at the prospect of starting a new campus on Capitol Hill. For
those of you who do not know us, St. Coletta has, for forty years, served children and adults with mental
retardation and autism. We are an independent, non-profit, non-sectarian institution that currently
occupies a beautiful, state-of-the-art facility in Old Town, Alexandria. Over 80% of our current student
body lives in the District of Columbia as do many of our staff members. Our enrollment is 115 students
and 85 staff members serve them.
In attempting to purchase and develop the land at 1214-1232 Pennsylvania Avenue, we are responding to
the critical need for services for our most worthy and most vulnerable citizens. Anyone who reads the
Washington Post is aware of the need for appropriate special education services for children with disabilities
as well as services for adults. We are committed to the wonderful people we serve and it is our hope this
expansion will allow us to include the nearly one hundred individuals on our waiting list.
We have met with the neighbors on E and 13th Streets S.E. and have been thrilled with their warm
support for this project. We have, however, been surprised and dismayed at the opposition we have
encountered from the Capitol Hill Restoration Society (CHRS) and the staff of Historic Preservation
Review Board. St. Coletta has agreed to move a Victorian house that fronts on Pennsylvania Avenue and to
stabilize and restore the historic portion of the shotgun house which fronts on E Street. The
preservationists are insisting that we keep the entire shotgun house including an addition that dates from
1938 and that we also keep, stabilize and restore a dilapidated 1917 garage. Without access to the E Street
lot, which is entirely obstructed by the garage, we cannot safely bring in buses to offload our students.
We cannot do this project without your help. We are compiling comments from the Capitol Hill citizens to
present to HPRB and BZA. Please use the form below to tell us how you feel about the prospect of “St.
Coletta on the Hill.” As a resident of Capitol Hill for twenty-five years, I know you, and I know that you
will take our special children and adults into your very big hearts. Please let CHRS and HPRB hear how
you feel about the meaningful development of property that has too long been an eyesore. Our children are
counting on you!
Sharon Raimo
Return coupon below to
St. Coletta School
207 South Peyton Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
and more families are deciding
to stay in the city, and on the Hill.
For example,I can’t find a central
location for information such as: What
charter schools are nearby and what are
they all about? (I know about the World
Public Charter School,but what else is
there?)
What are the public schools in the
neighborhoods,what are the school district
lines,and what public school choices
do I have? What private schools are
on the Hill,and what are they known
for?
If you can pull together the imformation
right away, this would be especially
timely as January 28th is the deadline
for registering kids for out-of-boundar y
public programs. (Include a sidebar
about registering deadlines and forms
needed to register.) The information is
out there,it just never seems to get
pulled together in a way that is relevant
to Hill dwellers.
Over the summer you can do a similar
profile on local day care centers, as they
frequently form new classes in
September. Or perhaps a spring issue
on summer activities for kids....
I know that you are not a parenting
magazine per se. However, many of your
readers are parents struggling with
tough choices about where to send their
children to school and whether to move
to the suburbs. A gung ho,informative
article on local school choices would be
SO appreciated!
Please let me know if you think that
this is an idea that you’d like to pursue.
Thanks!
SUSAN CHAPIN
Susan’s letter went directly into the edi -
tor’s “ask and ye shall be asked to do it
yourself” box,since we were already in
production for this issue of the Voice, and
didn’t have a brain cell to spare. See
page 36 for her gung ho,informative arti -
cle on early childhood education choices.
Thank you Susan! Great job!
To the Webmaster:
Re: The map at
http://voiceofthehill.com/images/CapM
ap.jpg:
You show access [to the Freeway] via
Massachusetts Avenue,NW. I don’t
think that left turn from Massachusetts
onto the ramp is even vaguely legal.
And even if it’s legal (which I doubt),it’s
a good way to get killed. (You can be
rear-ended or hit by oncoming
Massachusetts Avenue traffic going 55
mph; take your pick.)
Better route is via H Street, which you
can hop onto by going up New Jersey
Avenue—1 block from Massachusetts
Avenue. (This is
what the “access
to 395” signage
says to do,BTW.)
M A R K
E C K E N W I L E R
P.S. Congrats on your first year. You
folks have added much fresh perspective
(and useful info,like *everything*
on the web site) that was lacking in the
Hill Rag, which had become dull,predictable,
and (IMHO) essentially irrelevant.
I hope you prosper for many years
to come.
(Note: BTW= By the way; IMHO=In my
humble opinion)
To the Editor:
Re: Puck Statue Update
The response to your wonderful article in
the September 12,1999 issue of the
Voice has been overwhelming. Once
again,thank you for writing such a super
story on the Folger’s Puck statue.
Enclosed is a short update on what
has happened since September. Just
this morning the conservator from Save
Outdoor Sculpture! informed the Folger
that he will be ready to begin work on
Puck in January 2000. We have no date
set yet for Puck’s removal from his
base,but I will let you know as soon as
I learn it.
Again,thank you so very much for
your time and your interest in Puck’s
plight. Everyone at the Folger, and me
especially, looks forward to a happy ending
to this stor y...
All donations to the Puck Appeal are
gratefully accepted and are 100% taxdeductible.
Checks should be made out
to Folger Shakespeare Library with the
notation “For Puck.” Send to: Give Puck
a Hand, Folger Shakespeare Library, 201
E. Capitol St., SE, Washington,DC
20003,or call 675-0303 for more information.
Sincerely,
M A RY W. SCHAL LER
Romance writer, Mary Schaller, writes
under the name Tori Phillips,and has
served as a docent at the Folger for the
last 21 years. Last spring she began a
campaign to restore Puck,the playful
statue that has stood in front of the
library since 1932.Puck has badly deteri -
orated from exposure to the elements,
and is missing his right hand along with
various other parts. Schaller’s enclosure
says,in brief,that so far $13,000 has
been netted for the restoration,a little
more than half of what’s needed.
www.voiceofthehill.com 3
Vo i cem a i l The Voice of the Hill is published and
distributed monthly to Capitol Hill
residence and business locations.
The focus is on the community and
includes contiguous neighborhoods
from Gallaudet University to the Navy
Yard and from the Capitol to the
Stadium Armory Complex.
Publication and distribution is the
third Friday of each month.
Advertising deadline is the first of
the month preceding publication.
Voice of the Hill
120 11th St.,SE,Rear
Washington DC 20003
202-544-0703 Main office
202-544-2557 Editorial
202-547-5133 Fax
www.voiceofthehill.com
bruce@voiceofthehill.com
stephanie@voiceofthehill.com
adele@voiceofthehill.com
Staff
Stephanie Cavanaugh,
Editor
Bruce Robey
WebMaster
Adele Robey
Graphic Design and Production
Jill Silva
Robert Shamo
Advertising
Gene Miller, Church Editor
Larry Kaufer, Sports Editor
Shaun Koiner, Circulation Manager
Phoenix Graphics,Inc.
T/A Voice of the Hill
and Stephanie Cavanaugh
Publishers
Contributing Writers
Judith Capen
Susan Chapin
Stephanie Deutsch
Kristen Hartke
Memberships
Printing & Graphic Communication
Association
Printing Industry of America
Capitol Hill Association of Merchants
and Professionals
Art Directors Club of Metropolitan
Washington
Barracks Row Business Alliance
Cover photo: From the Collections of
The Jewish Historical Society of
Greater Washington.
VOICE o f
T h e
H i l l
Celeste McCall
Laura Scott
Duncan Spencer
Bonny Wolf
To the Editor:
I read with interest Duncan Spencer’s
“It’s Time for a Charter High School on
the Hill?” (December 17,1999). I
would like to correct the statement
regarding St. Peter’s Interparish School.
St. Peter’s Interparish is not subsidized
by the Archdiocese of Washington.
The only direct assistance to the school
is a nominal contribution provided by the
Capitol Hill parishes of St. Dominic,St.
Joseph,St. Peter, and St. Vincent De
Paul (hence,the “Interparish” in the
school’s name). Any financial assistance
provided by the Archdiocese is
given directly to families,on an “asneeded”
basis.
My thanks for the contribution that
your newspaper is making to the neighborhood.
Sincerely,
FR. MICHAEL J . O’SUL LIVAN
Pastor, St. Peter’s Parish
To the Editor:
Duncan Spencer can help the children of
the District of Columbia by using the
power of his pen to urge parents to participate
in their child’s education. He
can write about parents who are successful
in motivating their students to
achieve. He can interview DCPS graduates
who are presently in college. He
can sponsor a tour of local colleges for
6th and 7th graders. He can interview
Arlene Ackerman who shoulders the obligation
to educate our children with grace
and hope. He can encourage those parents
he is addressing to get involved
with Ben Bonham to build up support for
technology initiatives and facilities initia -
tives that would reflect to children that
they truly are invited to participate in the
21st century.
CATHERINE PFEIF FER
For more comments on Duncan
Spencer’s December column, please see
page 21.
To the Editor:
I have really enjoyed your paper. It is a
wonderful addition to Capitol Hill living.
Recently, I have been wishing that you
would profile local (no,I’m not talking
about St. Albans or Burgundy Farm)
schools.
As a parent of a 3-year-old who may
start school next fall, I would LOVE to
see a profile of all of the schools on—or
very near to—the Hill. Like most Capitol
Hill residents,I don’t want to drive to far
NW to take my child to school.
I am sure I am not alone, as more
4 www.voiceofthehill.com
them the remains belonged to
horses.
“They put the bones in a trash
bag, but not before a kid picked up
a skull and took it home. His
mother was understandably upset
and called the cops. The
Smithsonian estimated the bones
were 100 years old, and from
between four and six bodies. We
still don’t know how the people
died, but it was probably NOT
from natural causes,” says Wolf.
So—does Capitol Hill have a century-
old murder mystery?
“When a house was redone
across the street they found an old
gun in the rafters,” adds Wolf.
“Remember, back in the 1900s,
this was a rummy neighborhood,
with bootlegging, prostitution,
people living on the margins of
society.”
That was 100 years ago, and the
crime has not been solved. In fact,
it was long forgotten until 1973,
when a group of Capitol Hill
neighbors decided to renovate
their circa 1900 tin garages, in the
100 block of 11th Street, SE.
Dick Wolf, a Capitol Hill activist
for 35 years and past president of
the Capitol Hill Restoration
Society, recounts the bizarre tale:
“A group of us were redoing our
garages. We had a contractor digging
up the concrete floor behind
150 11th St., SE, on Philadelphia
Row. We came back from work one
day and found a bunch of police
cars in our alley. The contractor
had dug up some bones. When he
recognized them as human, he
realized he had a problem and
called the police. The police held
off curious onlookers by telling
The Lallys also unearthed medicine
bottles, high button shoes,
Indian head pennies, invitations
to the 1895 Texas State Society Ball
and class notes from the
Columbian University Law School,
the forerunner of George
Washington University. Not surprisingly,
the original homeowner,
M.M. Parker, was an 1898 graduate
of Columbian. He later served on
its board. Parker was also an original
District of Columbia
Commissioner.
“We used these discoveries as a
springboard for further research
on our house, to find the original
owners,” said Lally. “I took the
stuff to Nancy Kassner (archaeologist
of the historic preservation
division of the District of
Columbia’s Department of
Consumer and Regulatory Affairs).
Less dramatic but more enlightening
was a discovery by Pat and
Rosemary Lally, who live in a “prototypical
Capitol Hill row house”
in the 700 block of Third Street, NE
The two-story brick Victorian
structure dates from 1891. Inspired
by his longtime involvement in
the Capitol Hill Restoration
Society, Pat wanted to research his
historic home.
“When we excavated our basement,
we found two dozen artifacts,”
says Pat, director of New
York City Mayor Rudolph
Giuliani’s Washington office.
There was a heap of cheap potter y,
considered the ‘paper plates’ of the
era. Some of it was ear thenware,
other pieces were inexpensive
exports, porcelain dishes decorated
with floral decals, typical of the
period.
On Plates, and Bones and Oyster Shells
It was a foggy night and the gas lamps we re
f l i cke ring. A hors e - d rawn cab pulled up to a
fashionable house on Philadelphia Row. T h e
we l l - d ressed couple climbed down from the carri a g e ,
the lady holding her skirts from the muddy st re et as her
husband took her hand. A fter paying the hack dri ve r, th e
gentleman unlocked the front door and the pair entered th e i r
d a rkened dwe l l i n g . T h ey we re never to be seen aga i n .
BY CELESTE MCCALL
www.voiceofthehill.com 5
She
helped me
find out what it was
and how to put it in context. I
then did more in-depth research
on our house and neighborhood.”
The Lallys plan to mount and
display their treasures, which were
not considered treasures 100 years
ago. “This stuff was not precious, it
was garbage,” Lally says. “Back
then, people didn’t have trash
pick-up, dumpsters or garbage
bags. People just threw things into
their back yards or basements. Lots
of our artifacts cor respond with
our home’s original occupants. If
we didn’t have those artifacts, we
wouldn’t have a road map of the
past.”
Two items keep cropping up in
Hill back yards: lumps of coal and
oyster shells. Dick Wolf explains,
“Back then, back yards were not
cutesy little gardens. They were
working parts of homes, which
were heated by coal. If they didn’t
have coal bins, people just piled
their fuel out
back.”
As for the
oyster shells,
experts have
two theories:
shells could
have been used
as lime-rich soil
nutrients, or
perhaps they
were discarded
by a tavern or
restaurant.
“People ate a lot
of shellfish in
those days,” says Lally. “And they
just pitched the shells.”
Jeff Cooper of Cooper
Renovations, who does a lot of
work on Capitol Hill, offers another
reason: Until the practice was
outlawed, driveways were made of
crushed oyster shells. “They made
beautiful driveways, but [officials]
were afraid of bacteria.”
Cooper adds that he finds layers
of bricks and old bottles in many
yards. “People just threw things
out back,” he says. “Because of all
the layers of soil, bricks and broken
glass, eventually the level of
back yards rose. I’ll bet that 100
years ago, when you went out your
back door, there were two steps
down. Your house isn’t sinking,
your back yard level is rising.”
In spite of all of our amateur
backyard digging, few formal
archeological digs have been conducted
on the Hill. In July 1979,
there was an excavation at
Friendship House (619 D St. SE),
which was built in 1796. The dig,
under the auspices of the Resident
Associate Program of the
Smithsonian Institution, sought to
determine if digging a trench to
waterproof the basement
would harm any
“significant archaeological
resources.”
Second, they wanted
to recover any existing
artifacts. Long-time
Hill resident and historian
Ruth Ann
Overbeck served as
project officer and
coordinator. The actual
digging was done by
30 Smithsonian
Resident Associate
members. All they
unearthed was some
badly done restoration work dating
from the 1930s.
Archaeologist Nancy Kassner
recently worked on a site at
Potomac Avenue and I Streets SE,
which dated from the early 1850s.
There she found oyster shells, what
might have been a well, a patio
and a deeper “feature,” perhaps
a posthole? Kassner
surmised the location
might have been a tavern,
which could
explain the oyster
shells.
A graduate of
SUNY (State
University of New
York) at
Binghamton,
Kassner was
inspired by excavations
in lower
Manhattan’s South
Street Seaport area. She
readily admits there’s a dearth
of such activities on Capitol Hill.
But she’s looking, and needs our
help. “If you find things in your
yard or basement, please call me,”
she pleads.
On this day a visiting
Capitol Hill resident
is showing
Kassner her treasures,
all dug up from her
back yard on South
Carolina Ave. SE: a
handful of circa 1950s
marbles, a bent copper
spoon (19th century),
a hand-made nail
and some greentinted
bottle glass.
Plus, of course,
umpteen oyster
shells.
“If you do find
something, try not to
disturb it,’ adds
Kassner. “But whatever
you do, call me!”
Kassner’s phone number
is 202-442-4663. FAX: 442-
4860. E-mail: nancykassner@
hotmail.com.
Capitol Hill writer Celeste
McCall is a frequent contributor to
the Voice of the Hill
Your Backyard May Tell a Tale or Two
6 www.voiceofthehill.com
O n eSto re ,
T h r e eFa m i l i e s ,
O n e C e n t u ry
www.voiceofthehill.com 7
America married a Washington
salesman named Howard England,
making her full married name Mrs.
America Burns England. At leas t
for a time, the Burns and the
Englands lived together over the
store on E. Capitol Street.
Mom and Pop grocers often put
in long hours so that the children
can go to college. True to form,
Charles Jr. became a mechanical
engineer; his younger brother
James went on to medical school.
And when the children leave,
who runs the store? Charles and
America Burns left the grocery
business in 1930 when Charles was
60. The market at 421 E. Capitol
was taken over by Max Lenkin and
his son Samuel, who ran it until
1940, when the Gimbles took over.
Congress Market
Isadore Gimble and his wife Sadie,
were born in Russia. They came to
the US through Ellis Island. You
can go and see their names on the
memorial there. At fir st, Isadore
worked in a luggage factory gluing
suitcases together. The fumes from
the glue made him sick, so he
came to Washington to recuperate
at his brother Abe’s house.
As it happened, Abe had a small
grocery store in the H St., NE cor ridor,
and Isadore clearly took notes.
In 1931, he moved his family to
Washington and bought a market
at 23rd and M, NW. Around 1940,
Isadore and Sadie sold that business,
but within the year were
open again at 421 E. Capitol St.
When Isadore wondered what to
name this new grocery, his sons
Sidney and Abe lobbied for
“Congress Food Market.” The boys
won, and the name stuck.
Sidney, Sadie and Isadore’s eldest,
is now retired and living in
Florida. He recalls that a typical
day began at 5 or 6 in the morning
and ended at 10 or 11 at night. The
family took a half-day break on
Sunday mornings, when most
other stores were closed.
“Those small neighborhood grocery
stores might be considered
the city cousins of the countr y
general store, except without the
pot-bellied stove,” says Sidney.
“We sold a variety of things
besides groceries: dry goods, hardware,
kerosene, bags of coal, and
bundles of kindling. We used to go
to get our produce from the whole -
salers along the waterfront in
Southwest, about where Phillips’
Seafood Restaurant is now. Eggs,
poultry and dairy products came
from the wholesalers at 5th and
Florida, NE. My father had to be
his own butcher. We’d get a side of
BY GENE MI LLER
Mom-and-Pop
grocery stores
are a tough but
enduring way
of making a living
in America.
You buy a small store cheap, live
upstairs, keep it open 18 or so
hours a day, seven days a week,
and use your family instead of hiring
help. There has been a Momand-
Pop grocery store at 421 East
Capitol Street for more than a hundred
years. It has had only three
owners, with several more proprietors.
The Lee family has been in
residence since 1984 and they all
pitch in to keep it running from
7:30 AM to 11 PM, seven days a
week.
Jae Lee is the proprie tor and eldest
son. He is in his mid-30s and
has a quick warm smile. “Our
whole family helps whenever the
store is open. We don’t think
about working regular hours.” On
a bright January day, Jae Lee’s
mother rings up a purchase while
his younger brother and his sisterin-
law restock the shelves, the
beeps of the electronic register play
against the hissing zip of ripping
cardboard, the rattle and clink of
metal cans. Caviar (red on the
right, black on the left), chili con
carne, corned beef hash.
Charles Burns, Grocer
Ninety years ago, the young people
stocking shelves would have been
the children of Charles and
America Burns who owned the
market until 1944. The Boyd City
Directory for the era simply lists
the store under grocers as “Charles
Burns, 421 East Capitol.”
The Burns family started the
business in 1899, when the frame
dwelling on the corner of 5th and
East Capitol was razed and the cur -
rent brick structure was built.
Their customers were a mix of
Congressmen–three Senators and
two dozen Representatives lived
within a few blocks–government
employees, working class and
tradespeople. They did well
enough to buy the building in
1902.
Charles Burns was a native-born
Washingtonian. His father was
from Pennsylvania and his mother
from Virginia. He married a
Virginian named America. By
1920, their family included a son,
age 22, Charles, Jr., a daughter, age
20, also named America, and 7-
year-old James.
In a union no less euphonious
than her mother’s, daughter
Bellman’s at 510 1st SE and
Belton’s at 609 I NE. There was
Bers at 603 G SE, Blaubund’s at 901
9th St., NE, and Blumenthal’s at
829 9th NE. The list goes on and
on: Bogmovitz’s, Berdow’s,
Bronstein’s, Deckelbaum’s,
Friedman’s, Ginzburg’s. There were
dozens of Mom and Pop groceries
on the Hill in the 1940’s, most of
them owned by Jewish immigrants.
Then there were the chain
stores. If he looked out his front
window cattywampus towards the
west, Isadore could see the
Sanitary Food Market across the
street at 400 E. Capitol. Sanitary—
which later changed its name to
Safeway—had over 100 outlets in
Washington to compete with the
likes of Congress Food Market.
That meant that Isadore’s meat
and produce had to be a little
fresher, his store had to be a little
cleaner, open longer hours, and he
beef and he’d cut it into steaks and
roasts. We got our hams and
bologna from Auth’s.”
“We used to deliver groceries for
free, too. First, we took the back
seat out of our car to do it, but
later, we bought a navy blue Dodge
panel truck that had ‘Congress
Food Market’ on the side in gold
letters. I was the fir st one of the
sons to get a license, so I drove the
truck.”
The Gimbles’ customers were a
mix of civil servants and working
class neighbors, just as the Burns ’
customers had been. But the
Gimbles may have had to work
harder to keep their customers
happy, there was plenty of competition:
Moder’s deli at 411 E.
Capitol, Honikman’s at 723 E.
Capitol, and Sol Chotin’s at 915 E.
Capitol. Almost every direction
Isadore Gimble walked, there was
another Mom-and-Pop grocery.
There was Beiser’s at 135 C NE,
Jacob (left) and brother Jae Lee,proprietors of Congress Market
8 www.voiceofthehill.com
his wife and three sons to America
in hope of better things. But what
to do? They had little money and
their English wasn’t up to intricate
and subtle transactions.
“I was only 19 when we came to
the United States. At first, we lived
in Fredericksburg, VA, but there
just wasn’t much work for us there.
I worked in car washes and flower
shops–all sorts of jobs. There was
never much money. But then our
family decided to work together in
a grocery store. ”
Jae Lee got married a few years
ago and he and his wife now have
a five-year-old daughter. One of his
brothers also has a young daughter.
Business is good. In time their
children will grow up, go to
school, and probably forge different
careers from their parents.
Another new owner will be behind
the counter at 421 E. Capitol
Street.
In the meantime, there are
shelves to stock and customers to
be waited on. Jae Lee waves a warm
farewell from the storefront, and
goes back to work.
Historian and writer Gene Miller is
the Voice of the Hill’s Religion Editor
had to offer a more personal touch
if he wanted to stay ahead. And
stay ahead he did, until he could
no longer run the business.
Of Isadore and Sadie’s children,
only Sidney stayed in retail, and he
opened a clothing store, not a grocery.
The second son became a
physician and the third a lawyer.
Their only daughter married and
moved away. Isadore and Sadie
retired from the grocery business
in the mid ’60s and Isadore soon
passed on, followed shortly by
Sadie. Their children continued to
own the building, although others
operated the market until the Lee
family took over in 1984.
The Lees
Jae Lee and his family left Korea in
the early 1980s, well before the
economic boom in Southeast Asia.
Back then times were hard, money
tight, and opportunities few. The
family had relatives in the
Washington area, so Jae Lee’s
father left a job teaching agriculture
in a university and brought
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www.voiceofthehill.com 9
BY BONNY WO L F Early one Saturday morning
in 1926, Tom Kelly
went with his mother
Annie to the Eastern
Market and was pecked
by a chicken. The chicken wasn’t
really after Tom, but rather the
stub of pencil the 3-year-old was
holding.
The acquisitive chicken was one
of many live birds in crates
brought in by farmers from Prince
Georges County who lined the
curb outside the market with their
produce and livestock.
“You picked your chicken, the
farmer took it out, twirled it
around his head and that was the
end of the chicken,” Kelly says.
It has always been a question of
whether you pick the Eastern
Market or it picks you with its fresh
meats and produce—a case of
mutual attraction.
And Eastern Market serves much
the same function today as it did
that Saturday morning young
Kelly had his encounter with the
chicken.
The 127-year-old market at 7th
Street SE and North Carolina
Avenue is the only remaining public
fresh food market in
Washington. It has survived drives
to tear it down and others to build
it up. It has survived largely
because the community it ser ves
and the vendors who serve them
have fought to keep it open.
Pierre L’Enfant had public fresh
food markets in his original layout
of the city of Washington during
the presidency of George
Washington. Such markets were
considered signs of progress and
were designed by the best architects
of the day.
German-born architect Adolph
Cluss was a popular designer in the
mid-1800s, and he was chosen to
design the Eastern Market. Cluss,
who fled Germany after the 1848
revolution, has been credited with
changing the look of Washington
from that of a small town to a big
city. He also designed the National
Museum Building (now Arts and
Industries).
Cluss chose the popular
Victorian style for the Eastern
Market. The bull’s eye windows
and lofty interior ceiling buttressed
by steel and cast-iron trusses
were typical of inner city mar -
kets across the country in the last
century.
The Eastern Market was built in
1873 at a cost to the D. C. government
of $90,000, and has been in
continuous operation since it
opened.
The north section of the mar -
ket—now Market 5 Gallery—was
added in 1908. And in the ’20s, the
shed which still hangs over the
farmers line was put up to protect
shoppers and vendors from the
elements.
Municipally owned food markets
were established so residents of
city neighborhoods could get produce
from local farms.
Like they are today, the owners
of the stalls were usually there, and
often passed the business to the
next family generation.
Charles Glasgow was born on
Capitol Hill in 1917. His grandfather
was a baker whose breads were
sold at the market and the young
Glasgow was often at the market
with his wagon. He bought the
market’s seafood business in 1938
and his sons and nephews remain
there today.
Little boys were a common sight
at the market in its earlier days.
Small children would accompany
their mothers—Kelly says he was
often the only male besides the
vendors—and as they got older,
they would come back to earn
pocket change by helping shoppers
carry their baskets home.
George Butler recalls these
young entrepreneurs in his book
Simpler Times:
“These boys, lined up with their
little express wagons, would shout
in chorus, ‘Baskets carried!’ I
couldn’t wait to join their ranks,
and as soon as mother let me, I
became one of them.
“My goal was to develop regular
customers, ladies who were satisfied
with my work and would
select me each week to carry their
baskets. The usual fee for a block or
two was 10 cents. Once in a while,
when a customer lived beyond
Lincoln Park, I was rewarded with
a whole quarter! Earning 50 cents
on Saturday morning ensured a
good week and meant that I could
consider myself rich.”
Public fresh food markets were
important in every community in
every city across the country when
the last century turned. People
came to market for sustenance –
for both commodities and community.
They would visit with their
to market
to market
A Hill Ritual fo r
M o re Than a
C e n t u ry
10 www.voiceofthehill.com
late 1950s when rents went up,
business lagged and his son went
to medical school and he had no
one to leave the business to.
By 1960, only the Glasgow
brothers’ Southern Maryland
Seafood Co. and Union Meat Co.
and Leon Becker’s La Poulet au Pot
chicken stall were left as perma -
nent market tenants.
In the early 1960s, there was a
proposal to use the market as the
National Children’s Theater and
Art Center. Then in 1963, the New
Center Market, successor to the
Center Market—the biggest and
finest of the city’s public markets—
evicted its merchants. A group of
12 dislocated vendors came to
Eastern Market, among them Chris
Calomiris who remains the senior
vendor at the market today.
In 1966, the following appeared
in The Washington Post:
“A vanishing part of city life is
the farmer’s market. On Capitol
Hill, folks have shopped for their
bread, their meat and vegetables
for nearly a century at the Eastern
Market. It is an institution regarded
with affection by Hill residents.
Threatened with destruction from
time to time, it has been saved at
neighbors, and they knew the
butcher by name.
The Eastern Market’s first meat
stand opened the same year the
market opened, and Castell’s Meats
continued through three generations
of Castells. In 1957, Mrs.
George M. White of 110 6th St. SE,
is quoted in The Washington Post,
saying: “I’ve been shopping here
since 1921. I still come here
because Mr. Castell has such wonderful
meat and the fruit and vegetables
are so nice and fresh. But I
remember when all the stalls were
occupied and you could buy such
lovely flowers and all kinds of different
things.”
Certainly, fewer stalls were occupied
than in 1921. With refrigeration,
supermarkets, and the developing
suburbs, shopping patterns
changed and market activity went
down.
In 1955, the House of
Representatives deleted a $21,000
budget request for maintenance
and repair on the market after
hearing recommendations that the
market be closed. Tenants even
offered to pay higher rents to keep
the market open.
George Castell finally left in the
The scene above was common at the Eastern Market in the late 1870s—snap peas spilling from wooden barrels in front of a wagon advertising Harper’s Cephalgine,
“nature’s remedy” for headaches and neuralgia.
Outrside the north end of the Eastern Market on a summer weekend.
www.voiceofthehill.com 11
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the 11th hour by district officials.
The market is a cozy neighborhood
spot, where personal attention is
lavished on the customer.… Here
the Hill people can catch up on
the week’s happenings and greet
old friends behind the fish counter
or enjoy the aroma of bread and
rolls, still warm from country
ovens. Shoppers initially are lured
by bargains or a desire for fresh
eggs, but they usually return to
chat and gossip. This community
market … cements the neighborhood.”
And when it looked as though
the market was really in danger of
closing, that neighborhood came
together to save it. Merchants and
members of the community
mounted a campaign to have the
market designated a historic landmark.
In 1971, both the exterior
and interior were so designated.
Since then, there have been a
number of government studies on
how best to renovate the market,
including multi-million dollar
plans to add more floors, more
stalls, more restaurants, elevators
and a grocery store—what many in
the neighborhood call “boutiquing
it up.”
Most recently, the District
passed a new law requiring the city
to hire a non-profit organization to
manage the market. The market is
currently managed by Richard and
Chad Glasgow of Eastern Market
Corp. and Southern Maryland
Seafood Co. The Glasgow family
has managed the market since the
1950s.
Under the new legislation, the
market manager is to run day-today
operations and develop a master
plan for renovations. Shortterm
repairs have begun and the
city says more than $2 million is
available to repair and restore the
market.
In the meantime, Hill residents
will continue to shop the way their
forbears did in the last century and
enjoy the small-town attributes of
a big-city institution.
Bonny Wolf is writing a book about
the Eastern Market – its history and
place in the community. If you have
stories, memories or other informa -
tion you would like to share with her,
please e-mail her at bwolf@his.com or
write to her c/o The Voice of Capitol
Hill.
12 www.voiceofthehill.com
A Tale of Two Fleishells
Eight Generations
on Capitol Hill —
and Counting
BY KRISTEN HARTKE
www.voiceofthehill.com 13
The Tune Inn is bustling
on a Friday at lunchtime,
just as it has for more
than 50 years. The old
wooden booths are filled
with administrative assistants and
construction workers, young
women with ponytails and old
men in suspenders, digging into
drippy cheeseburgers and fragrantly
steaming bowls of she-crab
soup.
On the surface, the restaurant
resembles the other old-time eateries
in the neighborhood, its walls
stained by decades of cigarette
smoke and grease. But it is the
inhabitants that tell the true story,
a tale of native Washingtonians
whose families have lived on
Capitol Hill’s side streets for generations
—even predating the Civil
War—in a city which is famed for
its transient population.
Anyone glancing at the
Fleishells, Junior and Senior, would
not guess that these two men represent
the sixth and seventh generations
of the Fleishell presence on
Capitol Hill. Bill, age 78, and 38-
year-old Will look like any ordinary
father and son out for a bite
to eat and a quick chat with other
Tune Inn patrons. There’s the pretty
waitress who is the g randdaughter
of Old Joe, the late owner of the
Tune. Just on his way out the door
is Ed Fogle, one of the architects at
the Capitol, who represents the
fifth generation of his own Capitol
Hill family.
According to Will, “The Hill is
full of families who go way back,
but most of them kind of keep it to
themselves. Sometimes historians
seem to distort things, so it makes
the old families a little wary.”
It is Bill’s memories and a treas -
ury of family photographs and
documents which paint a true
image of Capitol Hill in days gone
by. A time when neighborhood
homes were filled with Bill’s relatives
and long-time family friends,
with names like Shank, Dibble,
O’Bold, and Lusby.
There were grandmothers and
aunts who kept a sharp eye out on
little Bill, who says “I wasn’t even
allowed to walk past the Avenue
Grand (the movie theater which
was at 645 Pennsylvania Ave.,
SE)—those women kept a pretty
tight leash on me!”
Bill’s grandparents, Dave and
Annie Shank, lived at 100 C Street,
SE, a striking red brick house right
on the corner of Fir st and C Streets.
The house stood across the street
from the Cannon House Office
Building, which was razed in the
1960s, along with the entire square
block from First to Second Streets
and C Street to Pennsylvania
Avenue, to make way for the
Madison Building of the Library of
Congress. Some 1000 homes and
businesses were lost.
Dave and Annie’s was a streetfacing
house, of the type where
Capitol Hill’s middle-class and
upper-middle-class families lived.
Although it could not boast
indoor plumbing, even during the
1920s and ‘30s, there was a sizable
privy out back to ser ve the family
as well as the Cong ressmen who
rented rooms. A tributary of the
old Tiber Creek ran underneath
the privy.
Behind the street-facing houses
like that of Bill’s grandparents was
a bustling world of another sort, a
neighborhood-within-a-neighborhood
where Capitol Hill’s working
class families lived.
While today it is somewhat fashionable
to live in the old car riage
houses which are tucked away in
Capitol Hill’s alleys, in Bill
Fleishell’s youth those dwellings
were reserved for immigrants,
blacks, and Appalachians who not
only lived in the alleys, but also
ran stores and other businesses.
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Great grandfather Fleishell’s diary showing his thoughts on the death of Abraham Lincoln
14 www.voiceofthehill.com
A Capitol Hill childhood
between the two World Wars has
given Bill rich memories that only
a Washington-bred child could
have. On Inauguration Day, 1933,
Bill and cousin Dave Bowie (Does
the Maryland suburb strike a bell?
Yes, it’s the same family.) ran
alongside President Franklin
Roosevelt’s car as he was driven to
the White House from Capitol
Hill.
Bill remembers that the alley
behind Annie’s house had a grocery
store, a hat shop, a shoemak -
er, and other shops necessary to
the daily life of Washington’s
working poor. Will, who now owns
two of Capitol Hill’s old carriage
houses, says ruefully “My g randmother
would just roll over in her
grave if she knew I lived in an
alley.”
brushes attached to the front
which went up and down the trolley
tracks to clear off the snow.
Hot summer nights were spent
sleeping in the open out at Hains
Point.
Fleishell family members could
be found throughout the city, in
Georgetown, Anacostia, and
Manor Park (now known as
Brightwood). Other relatives
included Bill’s uncle, Henry
Addison (Metro’s Blue Line to
Addison Road? Yes, same family.),
who was the last mayor of
Georgetown.
Another uncle, Wooten Young,
served on the board of directors for
the Washington Senators back in
the days when going to see a base -
ball game meant a quick trolley
ride to Griffith Stadium. Bill
remembers going out to Walter
Johnson’s farm in Germantown,
where the famed pitcher raised
exotic birds, and he chuckles with
chagrin when he thinks of all the
autographed baseballs he used to
have: “I don’t know whatever hap-
Sometime during that same year
Bill and some of his school chums
hijacked a trolley from a trolley
barn across the street from their
school on Georgia Avenue. “We
drove that trolley all the way out to
Military Road and back,” g rins Bill.
Did they get in trouble? “No, no t
really, except for that we didn’t
stop to pick up any passengers.”
While the Southwest waterfront
district was “a real ghetto” back
then, you could go down there and
catch a boat to Marshall Hall, an
amusement park out by Mount
Vernon.
Or you could go out to Benning
Road and pay 75 cents for a train
ride to Chesapeake Beach, a trip
Bill remembers taking often with
his grandmother, saying “It was an
old steam engine, and it was all
open. It had green velvet seats, but
they were all covered in soot. I
always remembered those beautiful
seats, coated in that black
grime.”
On snowy winter days, there
were horse-drawn trolleys with big
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Theater Alliance:
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Call for times and tickets
Films on the Hill:
THE CAMERAMAN
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Friday, Feb. 11
7:30 p.m.
A Buster Keaton classic
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Art League Gallery
Talk: PRIMARY
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Thursday, Feb. 3
7:30 p.m.
Photos over the next 3 pages are from Will Fleishall’s family archives of life on the Hill.
www.voiceofthehill.com 15
pened to any of those balls. We
probably just played a baseball
game with them.”
The Fleishell name itself can be
traced back to 1855 on Capitol
Hill, when Jacob Fleishell, a stone
cutter, moved from his hometown
of Baltimore to work on the extension
of the wings of the U.S.
Capitol building. Jacob lived with
his first wife, Margaret, and two
sons at 408 Fourth St., NE, a neighborhood
that had a high concentration
of stone cutters in residence.
A few years later, the Fleishell
name surfaced prominently in a
September 1858 edition of the
Evening Star when Jacob took a fall
from a poorly-constructed scaffolding
while working on the
Tennessee marble grand staircase
on the Capitol building. The newspaper
was eager to report the grisly
details of this near-fatal accident,
concluding that “Mr. Fleishell is a
first rate workman, a valuable citizen,
and is much respected by a
large number of persons to whom
he is known, and who will regret
to learn of his misfortune.”
While Jacob was forced to give
up his stone cutting career as a
result of his unfortunate accident,
his family continued to thrive and
flourish. Jacob busied himself
keeping a record of local events—
mostly the numerous deaths of
neighbors and relatives—in a small
notebook which is now in Will’s
possession.
The book tells of Jacob’s new
home, located at 17 Fourth St., NE,
which was completed for a sum of
$500 in 1867. Myron Weinstein,
who bought the same house some
100 years later, began researching
the house on his own. He became
intrigued by the Fleishell family,
particularly when he discovered
that they were still in the neigh -
borhood. “Myron found out some
things about our family that none
of us knew,” says Will. “He really
seemed to get a kick out of it.”
In the complicated way that
families and neighborhoods
become interwoven, Jacob Fleishell
Wa rm Holiday Wishes
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Many thanks for your business during 1999
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and Myron Weinstein’s home has
now passed into the hands of
Monica Miller and her family,
where her two-year-old daughter
represents the third generation of
Capitol Hill residents.
Miller lived in the neighborhood
as a child and went to school at
Brent Elementary. When she was
house hunting she was primarily
interested in the house at 15
Fourth St., NE (once the ancestral
home of the O’Bolds, another
branch of the Fleishell clan). It was
there that her parents met (as
inhabitants, respectively, of the
first and second floor apartments)
and then later married in 1961.
Myron Weinstein’s papers conveyed
with the mortgage, so Miller
knows all about the Fleishell residency.
She is now primarily concerned
with restoring the original
interior details which have been
either diluted or deleted by 100-
plus years of renovations.
Perhaps the most infamous, and
still unconfirmed, relation in the
Fleishell clan is Mary Jenkins
Surratt, who was hanged—some
think unjustly—as one of the conspirators
in the assassination of
Abraham Lincoln. Mrs. Surratt ran
a boardinghouse at 541 H St., NE,
which is also where she was ar rested,
and her family had long been
affiliated with St. Peter’s Catholic
Church on Capitol Hill.
Will Fleishell has traced his fam -
ily to a Thomas Jenkins, who was a
blacksmith with the Navy Yard in
the 1830s. The Surratt Society,
which operates the historic Surratt
House in Prince George’s County,
has indicated that Jenkins was
indeed related to Mary Jenkins
Surratt—although Will is quick to
point out that this has not yet
been officially documented.
Interestingly, old Jacob Fleishell
did make a comment in his notebook
about Mary Surratt and the
circumstances surrounding her
death: “Executions of Mrs. Surratt,
Payne, Herrold, Atezerote was
hung at the penitentiary on Friday
July 7th 1865 for the murder of
Abraham Lincoln at & in the theater
on Good Friday night the 14th
of April 1865. Mrs. Surratt was
innocent & prejudice hung her but
God received the great sacrifice.
God have mercy on her soul.”
Jacob does not indicate whether
or not he knew and/or was related
to Mrs. Surratt, but she and many
Fleishell family members were
buried at the Catholic Mt. Olivet
16 www.voiceofthehill.com
401 M Street, SW 2400 14th Street, NW 725 8th Street, SE
202-554-8840 202-986-7360 202-547-6540
Washington, DC Washington, DC Washington, DC
Cemetery on Benning Road, NE.
While Will has been active in
obtaining more information about
his family’s history, he is also
hopeful that successive generations
will take on the task and dig
even deeper. One of Will’s sisters,
Sheila, also lives on Capitol Hill
www.voiceofthehill.com 17
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A presentation of the theater alliance
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Christ Church 620 G Street, SE on Capitol Hill
directed by stephen jarrett
music direction by jeffery watson
tickets and info
202.547.6839
with her son, John Myers, who
represents the eighth generation of
the Fleishell family in this contin -
uing Capitol Hill saga.
But not everyone in the family
has always been consumed by the
Fleishell story. Will’s mother,
Isabelle, came to Washington with
Bill from a Philadelphia family of
Scottish descent, and was instantly
thrust into a city full of Fleishells
and other relatives. Bill says “My
wife never did understand why all
this local history was such a big
deal. She was more interested in
learning about her own family
back in Scotland!”
The Fleishell father and son duo
are artists who, like the long line of
stone cutters, carpenters and other
artisans from whence they came,
have engaged in careers involving
some aspect of Washington’s main
economy: government.
Bill laughs that he “spent 30
years drawing elephants,” as an
artist for the Republican National
Committee, where he created the
familiar star-spangled elephant
logo.
Will is engaged as a master
engraver for the Bureau of
Engraving, where he is one of the
talented artists who creates, in
incredible detail, the glorious
images that you can find on the
U.S. currency in your wallet.
Here in the dawn of the 21st century,
people often bemoan the loss
of small towns and family homesteads
as fast food restaurants and
strip malls stretch from city to suburb
and back again. Yet in the city
there are still families with roots
that go back to the birth of our
country, to a time when the popu -
lation was so small that practically
everyone was related to practically
everyone else.
Nearly every block of Capitol
Hill houses a family which dates
back at least two or three gener ations,
and often even farther. The
Fleishells, and families like them,
are a living history of our neigh -
borhood in days gone by, proving
that Capitol Hill is still really just a
small town, and the family homestead
is right next door.
Kristen Hartke is a Capitol Hill-based
writer whose own family fought in the
Revolutionary War. She’s probably
even a third cousin, 25 times
removed, of the Fleishells. opening january 22, 2000
18 www.voiceofthehill.com
Kennedy administration, working
at the National Security Council.
“We were going to stay two years,”
Adele says. But they never left.
In the Johnson administration
Clifford chaired the EEOC and
served as Counsel to the president.
He practiced law during the Nixon
years.
By 1974, the Alexanders were
sufficiently committed to
Washington that Clifford jumped
into the city’s first election for
mayor. With Adele helping to run
his campaign, he challenged
Walter Washington for the nomi-
Capitol Hill resident, historian and
writer, Adele Alexander used to
describe herself as “the world’s second
oldest graduate student.”
Second oldest because she says she
thought there was probably someone,
somewhere, at work on an
advanced degree and older than
she. But she also says she didn’t
care. “I figured I could have thirty
years of good work still in me and
it seemed enough.”
Since returning to academia at
Howard University in 1986 when
she was in her mid-forties,
Alexander has earned a PhD. in
history, taught at Howard, the
University of Maryland, Trinity
and George Washington
University and published two
books.
Her doctoral thesis grew into
Ambiguous Lives, Free Women of
Color in Rural Georgia, 1789 - 1879,
published in 1991 by the
University of Arkansas Press. This
spring, Homelands and Waterways,
the American Journey of the Bond
Family, 1846 -1926 appeared to
enthusiastic reviews. Dan Rather
called it “important history beautifully
written.” John Hope Franklin
described it as “nothing less than a
tour de force.”
For years, though, Adele
Alexander was more interested in
architecture than in history. She
grew up in New York City, in the
racially mixed, very diverse
Washington Heights neighborhood,
then went to Radcliffe
College where she majored in
architectural sciences.
In 1959 she married lawyer
Clifford Alexander, the son of
friends of her family and a g raduate
of the high school she had
attended. “When I was in 8th
grade he was the captain of everything
and president of the student
council,” she says. They both loved
New York and assumed they would
be there forever. “Neither of us
ever wanted a lawn.”
Government service brought
them to Washington. In the early
sixties Clifford was part of the
Their kids went to Georgetown
Day and Sidwell. Their daughter
Elizabeth is now a published poet
and fellow of the Whitney
Humanities Center at Yale. Their
son Mark became a law professor
and is now serving as the issues
coordinator for the Bill Bradley
presidential campaign.
It was while her children were
completing their university studies
that Alexander began to discover
her passion for history. A friend
was doing research on black
women and the suffrage movement
and interviewed Adele about
her grandmother and namesake,
Adella Hunt Logan.
Alexander knew the family stories
about Logan, that she had
grown up in Georgia, the product
of a white father and a mother of
both black and white ancestry.
She was a gifted student, went to
Atlanta University and then was
recruited to teach at Tuskegee
Institute, the school Booker T.
Washington had founded in
Alabama to train black teachers.
There Adella met and married
Washington’s good friend and col -
league, Warren Logan.
What Adele Alexander did not
realize was that her g randmother
had been quite a significant figure
in the early suffrage movement,
attending conferences and meetings
where she was welcomed
because her light-skinned complexion
allowed her to pass for
white, then reporting back to the
black community about what was
happening. She also became
Alabama’s only life member of the
National American Womens
Suffrage Association and led
debates on the subject at the
Tuskegee Woman’s Club.
Alexander’s friend also helped
her appreciate both the political
and the personal stresses of her
grandmother’s life. As she became
increasingly active in the suffrage
movement, Adella allied herself
with W.E.B. DuBois, contributing
to his publication, The Crisis. At
Tuskegee, though, DuBois’s archnation
but lost in the primar y. A
few years later he was back in the
federal government as Secretary of
the Army in the Carter administr ation.
Meanwhile Adele was working in
a variety of jobs from architectural
drafting to work on the staff of
Senator Adlai Stevenson III of
Illinois. Her stint with Stevenson
included service on the Senate
District Committee at the time of
the Home Rule legislation.
She and Clifford bought houses,
first on C Street near the Eastern
Market, then closer in, on A St. SE.
AD E L E AL E X A N D E R:
A LI F E BE AU T I F U L LYWR I T T E N
BY STEPHANIE DEUTSCH
www.voiceofthehill.com 19
rival, Booker T. Washington, was
firmly in control and was, in fact,
the Logans’ next door neighbor.
In addition, Adella had nine
children, three of whom died
young. Her last child, Alexander’s
father, was born when Adella was
in her late forties and had significant
physical problems. It was all
too much for her. “She had always
been considered ‘high strung’ and
a bit difficult,” Alexander explains.
In 1915, Adella Hunt Logan was
sent to a sanitarium.
She returned, fragile and uneasy,
just as the dying Booker T.
Washington was making his way
by train back home to Tuskegee.
His death put great strain on
Warren Logan, who was a possible
successor to Washington, and
plunged Tuskegee into extravagant
grief. The day of Washington’s
funeral, Adella Hunt Logan took
her own life.
Former President Theodore
Roosevelt, who was a trustee of
Tuskegee, was one of the mourner s
at her funeral.
It’s easy to see how such a story
would be compelling but Adele
Alexander was drawn less to its
sensational aspects than to the
way her grandmother’s personal
drama played out in a specific his -
toric context. It kindled an ongoing
interest in the role race plays in
every aspect of American his tory.
“African American history is
American history,” says Alexander
emphatically. “Race has always
been a major issue here; it perme -
ates everything.”
Alexander’s current book
explores the life of another member
of her family. The cover is a
striking photograph of her greatgrandfather
on her mother’s side,
John Robert Bond, a handsome
black man wearing the uniform of
his Grand Army of the Republic
veterans unit.
Bond was born in Liverpool,
England, the son of an African
father and an Irish Anglican mother.
He was, Alexander explains, an
anomaly. “A black Anglo-Saxon
Protestant.”
Bond came to the United States
as a very young man, served in the
U.S. Navy during the Civil War
and was severely wounded.
Following his lengthy recuperation
in the Portsmouth Naval hospital
in Virginia, he met and married a
former slave from the Tidewater
named Emma Thomas.
The book traces the family John
and Emma created; it tracks them
from Virginia to the Hyde Park
neighborhood outside of Boston
and follows their son, Percy, to
social prominence in Washington,
D.C. and Highland Beach, a
Maryland vacation community
founded by Frederick Douglass’s
family.
Alexander spent much of last
summer and fall promoting her
new book. There was a big party
and book signing for friends and
colleagues held under a tent in
Highland Beach, where her mother
had summered as a child. Ther e
were readings, bookstore appearances
and television interviews.
The most exciting events of the
period, though, had nothing to do
with the publication of the book.
Alexander’s son and her daughter
each provided her with a new
grandchild, bringing the total to
five. It is clear, as she whips out a
photograph of her two smiling
children surrounded by laughing,
scampering kids and babies in
arms, that Adele Alexander is a
proud parent and doting grandparent.
Asked to describe her feelings as
a historian about the new millennium,
Adele answers that she sees
the increased interest that many,
herself included, are expressing in
recording family history. It is a way
of combating the sense of going
into the unknown that one feels at
a milestone such as the advent of
the year 2000. “Family is something
people can hang onto,” she
says. “It’s something they comprehend.”
That said, Adele’s next project
may actually take her away from
family subjects. She’s thinking
about writing a life and times of
Homer Plessy. Plessy was considered
to be a black man but he
looked white; his ride in a “whites
only” railroad car resulted in his
arrest and led to the Plessy v.
Ferguson court case which in 1896
codified the concept of “separate
but equal,” making Jim Crow not
just the custom of the country but
the law of the land.
Homer Plessy made a decision to
challenge an accepted practice he
saw as wrong and to test the con -
cept of racial identity. What made
him do it? What did he achieve?
Will understanding their history
keep young minority kids from
becoming increasingly angered
and alienated? These questions
are critical to Adele Alexander and
she’s seeking answers to them —
from her twin perspectives as a historian
and as a g randmother.
Stephanie Deutsch is a Capitol Hillbased
writer and frequent contributor
to the Voice of the Hill
Adele Alexander in her Capitol Hill
home.
20 www.voiceofthehill.com
Ask Judith
H&W Contracting, Ltd.
MAURICE HILL, CEO
Home Improvements
Don’t let your house get you down.
Let H&W Contracting keep it up.
We can take care of it all.
Home Improvements
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Dear Judith:
We ’re redoing our kitchen and my husband
wants all white: white floor, white cabinets, the
whole works. How can I dissuade him?
— S CARLET O’HILLA
Dear Scarlet:
If his favorite way to kick back after a long day is
pulling on the rubber gl oves, taking out th e
toothbrushes, rags, and cleaning supplies, and
grooming the kitchen for his recreation, let him
go with white. Or, if he is retired and at a loss to
fill his days with meaning, I suppose cleaning
the kitchen is an option.
From your comment I assume cleaning obsessively
is not your interest. The thing about white
is that it looks really nice when it’s brand new.
From there it is downhill into the depths of
gunk—unless you clean and clean and groom
and polish.
We Americans seem to imbibe an irresistible
desire for the new with our homogenized milk.
But, we don’t imbibe the necessary coro l l a ry
interest in cleaning and maintenance that keeps
new looking new.
I know of an expensive Poggenpohl kitchen,
white cabinets and appliances, that was, as far as
I could see, ripped out and replaced with a new
kitchen for no discernable reason other than
gunk. And there’s the case of buying a new toaster
oven for the critical mom’s visit rather than
tackling the crumbs on the old one.
When a former architectural student of mine
bought a new suburban “townhouse” he insisted
that he would keep the white tile and grout in his
foyer clean—with a toothbrush if necessary—
and he did. Then he got married, had an adored
baby girl, got a life. Now he confesses that the
white tile and g rout doesn’t look so hot and he’s
lost interest in grooming it when he could be
playing with his daughter.
White is an act of denial, wishful thinking that
clean will arrive in your house.
Besides the fact that picking white is like setting
a land mine for yourself, it is technically not
a color. For that matter, neither is blac k.
White is the presence of all colors. Think about
sunshine split into a rainbow by a prism. Black is
the absence of all color. We have an office policy
against the use of either of these non-colors in
projects. For walls or ceilings where we want
high reflectivity, we usually use a “white” that is
really slightly warm or cool. When we want the
pipes and ductwork above to disappear, we use
very dark, rich, saturated colors like Charleston
greens, deep blues, dark purple or the like. These
hues offer camouflage while contributing a richness
not possible with black. I will confess to my
personal exceptions to these rules: I wear black,
we paint our iron fences black, and often use
white toilet fixtures.
Color is an opportunity to say someth i n g ,
about who you are, how you live, how you want
to live. Don’t you have a favorite “real” color?
Something that is about you?
The wife of a colleague of mine liked to greet
the day slowly and gently, so they painted their
bedroom dark. Another acquaintance, realizing
he only used his dining room at night for rather
formal meals painted the room very dark so the
candles would create pools of light at the table,
focussing the room on the food and the people.
A lot of times people are decision-ed out by the
time they get to choosing colors for a project.
Just painting all the walls basic white at that
point is ok. You can always add color later. But I
would never advise picking white for permanent,
built-in items like cabinets or flooring.
Judith Capen, AIA, practicing restoration architect,
is the author of many of the Capitol Hill Restoration
Society’s award-winning guidelines for work on
Capitol Hill Homes. Judith Capen, AIA, practicing
restoration architect is the author of many of the
Capitol Hill Restoration Society’s award-winning
guidelines for work on Capitol Hill Homes.
VOICES UNHEARD
Concert of the Lesbian & Gay Chorus of Washington,
D.C., Ray Killian, Music Director
with special guests:
Bread & Roses Feminist Singers and the
Maryland Gay Men’s Chorus
Saturday, February 5, 2000, 8 pm
Sunday, February 6, 2000, 4pm
(sign language interpreted for the deaf)
Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church X
4th and Independence avenue, SE
Tickets $15, general admission
For ticket information 202-5467-1549 & www.lgcw.org
Some complimentary tickets available—funded by Whitman-Walker Clinic &
DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. On day of performance, 1/2
price tickets available only at TICKETPLACE, 12th and PA Ave., NW
www.voiceofthehill.com 21
Spencer Says
Riding the Real Estate Wav e
Housing Prices: Then, Now and To m o rr o w
BY DUNCAN SPENCER
Ibought my house in 1970 during a down
market. It was a gamble. It happened this
way. After coming to Washington, and living
in a rented house on Independence Avenue
SE, the owner offered to sell to me. It was a small
f rame house with a deep ya rd, no part i c u l a r
a rch i t e c t u re, and rushing commuters at th e
doorstep. At $30,000 the price seemed too steep.
I didn’t know it at the time, but that investment
would have been as good as buying
America On Line five years ago.
Back in 1965, when I arrived in Washington,
people were still talking about “block busting”
and “white flight.” Many homeowners raced to
leave in the terrible racial tide that panicked
Washington after President Dwight Eisenhower
ordered the schools desegregated. Then, it was
said, brick row houses on the Hill could be had
for $6,000; in fact many of them were simply
deserted by owners.
It’s hard to imagine how different things were
then. East Capitol Street was dotted with tourist
homes, some sporting green carpet and neon
signs in windows. 7th Street—both SE and NE—
was considered “beyond the pale” as far as gentrification
was concerned.
When the riots began in April of 1968, Capitol
Hill was a little circle of calm surrounded by
flaming outrage. 8th Street, SE suffered some
damage and looting, but H Street, NE was devastated,
and 7th Street NW was set aflame.
A sage investor once told me once that the best
of all times to call your broker was when bombs
are falling or people were fleeing in panic. 1970
seemed a good year to buy here. DC was truly
depressed.
The wake of the riot turned out to be as good a
time to buy in Washington as can be imagined.
For me, however, it was fool’s luck.
I was not wise, but being a New Yorker, I could
not believe that big, solidly built row houses, a
few blocks from the Capitol of the US, were selling
for under $50,000. But they were. A fear of
Washington had taken hold—the suburbanites’
secret ter ror that chaos will engulf him and his
car somewhere near downtown.
That fear was the dominating fo rce in
Washington in the late ‘60s, though few would
speak of it, and it created the now- f a m i l i a r
“doughnut” urban syndrome. But that phenomenon
could not endure in Washington, unless
one believed that the Congress and the White
House would pick up and move to Sterling, VA or
some other outpost.
But back to the money. I invested $52,000 in
an 1888 brick house on East Capitol Street, 6
blocks from the Dome. Its value has risen and
fallen rather dramatically several times over the
years. The city now values it at over $400,000.
Chances are, given the cur rent housing boom, it
would sell for considera b ly more. There ’s an
e qu a l ly good chance that, some time in th e
future, it could sell for less. That’s the way the
coaster rolls.
Capitol Hill has not seen steady growth since
the 1968 riots. There have been several nearly
disastrous periods for buying and selling real
estate on the Hill over the last 30 years.
The first real “crash” was 73-74, under unfortunate
President Jimmy Carter. The fuel shortage
sent prices to (then) unbelievable prices, and
interest rates soared to over 18 percent. House
sales virtually stopped. It was nearly impossible
to sell a house, or buy one—unless you could
assume a mortgage.
By 1978 prices for Hill houses were rising again,
and for a while speculators were buying houses
one day and selling them days later for considerable
profits.
In 1979, the first $300,000 houses began to
appear on the market. But by the end of the year
interest rates rose to 16 percent, ending all but
sacrifice sales.
By 1983, new mortgage instruments appeared;
short term, long term, adjustable. Speculative
momentum developed which drove people to
believe that the market would continue to rise.
By 1989 there were less than 100 houses on the
market available for sale.
And then the bottom fell out. People had big
expectations. They put houses on the market
and refused to lower prices when they didn’t sell.
And they didn’t.
The city was going through a crisis of confidence
—which may or may not have been a reaction
to city deficits, city leadership, crime, and
drugs. When people could not sell their houses,
they put them up for rent and got what they
could.
This period of stasis remained until th e
Control Board took over the financial reins in
1996. All at once the city seemed a different, less
volatile place. Whatever your beliefs in the right
of self-gove rnment for Wa s h i n g ton re s i d e n t s ,
people were ready to accept the main element in
the board’s name—control.
Since ’96 there has been a gradual acceleration
and steadily rising prices have prevailed. Once
again, houses on the Hill are hard to find. Young
couples have pushed gentrification into
No rth e a st, close to the Thurgood Mars h a l l
Federal Judiciary Building on Second Street NE.
Evidence is plentiful that developers think this
period is a new ballgame. The planned development
of 45 new row houses by a suburban developer
at the site of Bryan School at 13th and
Independence Avenue SE is a cosmic shift in confidence.
What does the Hill need most today? More
apartments. As Pardoe Real Estate broker Don
Denton says, “if there were two or three hundred
one-bedroom apartments on the market today,
they’d be gone.” He adds that if you work inside
the Capital Beltway today, the choice of living in
the city is logical.
Meanwhile, in the background of the boom, is
a curious reverse of the scene I sensed but hardly
understood in 1970 when I saw the large, slightly
run-down three-story building on East Capitol
which has been my house through all the ups
and downs of the market.
It seems that those who fled the city for the
suburbs are now afraid themselves—of the delays
and uncertainties their commuting pattern s
caused, of the problems which followed them
into their bedroom community paradise. Some
have returned, others are thinking about it.
Can the present housing boom go on? Of
course not. Neither will the stock market boom.
They’re just the same. No tree, you will notice,
grows to the sky.
But neither will Washington again slide back
into the chaotic state of the late ‘80s. For better
or worse, people are no longer laughing at my big
real estate gamble.
Duncan Spencer is a regular columnist for The
Voice and The Hill newspapers
22 www.voiceofthehill.com
Business Bits
You’ve passed it a hundred times, the
grand double-wide bri ck house in
the 600 block of East Capitol Street
with the big bay windows and frolicsome
statuary poking up through the
shrubbery like playful imps. Michelle Taylor take
note, the next time you plan a Hill gallery walk,
here’s one for the list.
It’s a gallery, you say? Why I had no idea....
Um, no. It’s the home and office of dentist
Larry Bowers. But it is also a constantly evolving
showplace for arts and crafts, much of it neighborhood
grown. Take the metal sculpture in the
front yard. That’s by Dierdre Saunders, who also
designed the hopscotch mural that romps across
the bridge behind Union Station. There’s another
of Dierd re ’s pieces in Bowe rs’ side ya rd ,
glimpsible from your cushy dental chair in one
of the procedure rooms.
Another chair, ano ther room, a view of fantasyland
painted on the airshaft wall. This, courtesy
of Ed Huse, famed for his cover art for the
Hill Rag.
In the waiting room an 8-fo ot rain st i ck
mounted on a custom pivot stands like an ornam
e n tal column guarding the offices beyo n d .
This by 2nd graders at Capitol Hill Day School,
and bought at a Day School auction. Go ahead,
give it a whirl.
Now flop in one of the waiting room chairs
and take careful study of the David Cochran
painting on the wall above the leather couch. It’s
wall-sized, and 40’s noir. A supper club somewhere
on the Bayou. A saxophonist is getting
down in the corner while a hot tamale in a slinky
dress shakes her booty to the beat. No wait, she’s
shaking her brushy. That’s a hot red toothbrush,
not a microphone, snapped between her fingers.
What’s the name of this joint anyway.... There it
is, glimpsed in reverse above the bar room door,
Bowers Bar and Drill. Keep looking, the more you
do, the more you’ll see.
Though he demurs, “I’m a dabbler. I play,”
Bowers is a fine artist himself. He carves things:
intricate jewelry for his wife of 18 years, Susan
Eubanks; fabulous sandcastles at the beach; sleek
futuristic model cars. Some of his work is on display
in the office, along with a growing collection
of hands, that includes a green giant sized
rubber glove mold and an 1800 year-old hand
from a Buddhist statue.
The place is filled with eye candy. Guess it’s in
place of the real stuff (he is a dentist after all).
Paintings by Imogene Drummond, Pa t ri c i a
Dubroof, Clay Hoffman, and several more David
Cochrans. Coming soon, ceiling murals in each
of the examination rooms. Seems K Williams
(that’s her whole name, K), a stage manager at
the Kennedy Center, was undergoing who knows
what involved procedure, and took sudden inspiration
from the blank ceilings—or maybe it was a
whiff of laughing gas, or one of the massage pads
that cushion each dental chair jiggled loose a
vision.
Anyway, K decided she was tired of looking at
the hung ceilings and suggested hauling in a set
designer to paint them. “One’s going to be a
Magritte sky, another’s going to be a greenhouse
arbor, the others.... Who knows?” Larry shrugs
amiably, “I tend to let people roll with things.”
Model cars by Larry Bowers, DDS and sons
Still Life with To o t h b ru s h
The artist himself,Larry Bowers
www.voiceofthehill.com 23
H a p py New l l e n n i u m !
from Fr a g e r ’s Hardwa r e
As we usher in the New Millennium and New
Year, Frager’s wishes you and yours a very successful
and prosperous new century.
In the year 2000, you will witness many
improvements and added services. Some changes
to look forward to are:
Our name will change from Frager’s ServiceStar
to Frager’s True Value. Because of this
change in affiliation, you will see us participating
in more nationally advertised promotions and we
will be able to offer you a wider selection of
merchandise. In keeping with our entry
into the 21st century, you will be able
to “shop at home” via the Internet. Of
course our name change will not affect our commitment
to the same great service you have
come to expect from Frager’s. We are the same
people with the same customer service philosophy
—to make your shopping experience a satisfying
and learning endeavor.
Our recent purchase of the building at 1101
Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, will allow us to expand
our rental items from 50 to over 500. This diverse
selection will include everything from drills to
party rentals, generators to concrete saws. Look
for this expanded selection when Frager’s “Just
Ask Rental” program is rolled out in the
spring of 2000.
Our paint department will be converting to
True Test paints, one of the highest rated paints
by Consumer Reports. These paints offer top quality
at a competitive price. Look forward to a wider
selection of colors as well as new color charts for
you to take home with you. We will still be able
to utilize our color matching computer to recreate
paint colors you have purchased from other
dealers.
The lawn and garden department will continue
to expand and increase it offerings based on your
suggestions and needs. Look for a new line of
ornamental concrete statuary, birdbaths, fountains,
etc. to appear in the outside Lawn and
Garden area in early February.
As we look forward to the excitement and
challenges of 2000 and beyond, we realize that
we can better serve you by responding to your
suggestions, comments and criticisms. Please feel
free to offer all three at any time. We will do our
best to satisfy your concerns.
Happy Newllennium... We look forward to seeing
more of you this year!!
Fr a g e r ’ s
Tr u e Va l u e
1101-1115 Pennsylvania Ave.,SE
Washington,DC 20003
Phone 202-543-6157 Fax 202-543-9048
Email and Website: to be announced
Hours Monday-Friday 7am - 7pm
Saturday: 7am-5:55pm,Sunday: 8am-5:00pm
And how’d this art come about? “We have a
very incestuous relationship with our patients.
We do their teeth and they work on our office.”
Bowers’ office is a place where all kinds of
things come to g eth e r: Home, family, wo rk ,
neighbors, and community. “It’s very old fashioned.
We support each other. You try to do business
with the people who do business with you.”
People like John Weintraub of Frager’s Hardware,
Jan Cammarata of JET Travel, and Jon Haberman
who built the exquisitely detailed cabinetry in
the waiting room. “It’s kind of like the barter system,”
says Larry, “you just use checks as your
barter.”
His whole roll-a-dex is crammed with locals
who can do stuff: plumbers, roofers, electricians.
He makes plenty of referrals. “When you’ve lived
here for a very long time, and become really par t
of the community you eventually build up quite
a library of people. Which is nice.”
It’s also helped him build his practice. “When
I talk to young dentists just starting out I say set
up somewhere where you can live. It will make a
huge difference in growing your business and the
satisfaction you get out of it.”
The Hill has been just such a place for Larry.
“Whenever one of my specialist friends comes to
Capitol Hill, and we’re sitting out for lunch at
Tu n n i c l i f f’s, he’s always just amazed at how
many people come walking by and say hello.
What’s really different from the guy who’s working
downtown is that you’re part of the community,
and you get to know all these people. You
don’t know them just from the dental office, but
f rom East e rn Market, or walking dow n
Pe n n s ylvania Avenue or just from wa n d e ri n g
around. People come here and say, ‘Wow! This is
so wonderful.’ And you don’t think anything of
it.”
Living in a house like Larry’s has some wonderment
about it too. These digs lend new meaning
to the concept of living over the shop. A Dr.
Kingsman built the place as a home-office in
1896. In 1926 a dentist, Dr. Butz, set up practice.
Larry and Susan, and sons Langley and Case,
moved in 13 years ago. So it’s always been a doc -
tor’s office, and a home.
Above the dental office are the living quarters.
Four bedrooms and an expansively elegant living
room that dwarfs boy-droppings and other family
clutter. An old-fashioned dining room and an
inviting eat-in, hang-out, kitchen. There are also
a few peripheral rooms, an office for Susan’s
growing antiques business, a playroom for the
kids. Upstairs is as art-filled as down, with new
stuff constantly coming—and frequently rotating
from home to office and back again. Over
Thanksgiving, his cousin-in-law, Anne Gray, a
New York-based artist who specializes in murals
and faux finishes, arri ved with stencils and
brushes in hand. The foyer floor now boasts an
intricate illusion of parquet tiles.
Larry says, “I like the arrangement. It’s great
for raising kids. There’s always someone home
when th ey come home,” he laughs, “eve n
though someone’s not really home. Plus they get
to see you at work.” Though, he notes, neither of
the boys has expressed much interest in becoming
a dentist yet.
Never mind that the arrangement “adds year s
to your life in not commuting. Both in time, and
in the extra years you’re probably going to live
Bowers Bar & Drill by
David Cochran
24 www.voiceofthehill.com
Mel, Sr. Mel, Jr.
MARKET POULTRY
Eastern Market
Winterize your palate with a large
selection of turkey products
225 7th St., SE
Washington, DC 20003
202-543-7470
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because you didn’t get stressed out.”
It also leaves him time to become engaged in
community activities. He’s a long-time supporter
of CHAMPS, the Capitol Hill Association of
Merchants and Professionals, and the CHAMPS
Community Foundation. He hires kids fro m
neighborhood job-training programs. He’s also
the leader of Cub Scout Pack 230.
This easy flow between home, and work and
community wasn’t always so. Ten years ago he
had 2000 patients, twice the number he sees
today, and twice as many people on staff. He
wasn’t enjoying himself. Then one of his mentors
told him, “the answer is not in how many
people you see, how big a practice you build. It’s
how well you take care of the people you have.”
Larry says, “It ’s a real leap of faith when you’re
used to building things faster and bigger to slow
down and see fewer patients.” But he did.
Now he maintains a fairly low volume of
patients, bet ween 800 and a thousand, and
spends more time with each, concentrating on
long-term, comprehensive care, “making teeth
last a lifetime.”
Dentistry ranks fairly low on the list of most
people’s interests. It’s also an easy one to neglect.
There are two big reasons that people put off
d e n tal wo rk, says Larry, money and fe a r.
D e n t i st ry is cost ly — p a rt i c u l a rly when yo u’ve
been putting it off. “The reason that we’re so
adamant about patients getting in for regular
maintenance is that most dental problems don’t
have any symptoms at all until they get to be
major problems. The idea is that you want to
c a t ch problems while th ey’re real small—th e
smaller they are the easier they are to take care of,
and the less expensive they are to take care of.”
But even if you’ve delayed, “Finances can be
worked through. Once we know what you want,
we can work out a plan to get there, whether it’s
done over a period of years or six months. If we
do it right the first time, we don’t have to do it
over again.”
O ve rcoming fear is another subject, and a
Bower’s specialty. His slogan is “We Cater to
Cowards.”
It helps that things have changed from the
olden days. Dentistry is now, “absolutely less
painful... It shouldn’t be painful at all. I can’t
believe how many times people come in and say
‘it sure has changed since I was a kid.’”
If you’re still a wobble of Jell-O when it comes
to the chair, Larry offers “laughing gas, and plenty
of anesth e s i a .” Sometimes a small hit of
Valium is in order, “just enough to take the edge
off, but still let you drive home.” Then there’s the
massage chair, music, and headphones to muffle
the purr of the drill. “And a huge thing,” Larry
stresses, “is having an empathetic staff member
to sit and hand-hold while the mean old dentist
is doing his work.”
W h a t’s the number one treatment people
request? Making teeth whiter. “We think teeth
look really really good when they’re really really
white. I don’t know if it’s because of film, or TV
stars that they see, or marketing and advertising,
but people want their teeth white—and many
want them whiter than what you’d even consider
to be natural. As one woman who had her face
done, and her make-up done, and her hair done,
said, ‘if you think I want it natural I wouldn’t
look like this.’”
Generally though, most people want something
“on the ‘enhanced’ side of natural. They
don’t want to look artificial.” Whether the goal is
buffed ivory or chiclet white it’s a simple enough
procedure, and not particularly costly. You don’t
need caps, drilling, or shots. Larry constructs a
mold that perfectly conforms to your teeth and
holds a lightening solution. In two or th re e
weeks, your teeth are white. The cost? “ A little
less than $400, and you can retouch it later without
going through the whole process.”
The one hitch is that you can’t bleach teeth if
you have a bridge or caps, since artificial teeth
won’t change color. “That gets back to planning
the treatments at the beginning,” says Larry. “A
lot of times whitening is done before restorative
work because we want to match the color. So
patients get to have the part they really want
right up front. It’s not something they have to
wait for.”
Given all this love of art and beauty, how’d he
become a dentist anyway— not, say, a plastic surgeon.
The 6’6” (just thought you’d like to know. I
did) dentist says, “I don’t know that there’s any
d i f fe rence. Wi th plastic surgery you have to
anticipate what things are going to look like after
you make changes.... and I think it’s probably
more difficult. At least whatever I do stays that
way.”
Yet, dentistry can often perform as magical a
makeover as a facelift. Larry says bad dentures
and missing teeth can cause considerable wrinkling
around the mouth, “when you bring someone
back to their proper bite height with a proper
fitting set of dentures, a lot of times the wrinkles
disappear.” Veneers are another enhancement
that can change the shape, color and
length of teeth and correct some overlapping
and crookedness, upping the voltage of a grin.
It’s all “easy cosmetic surgery. When a person’s
smile looks better, they look a lot better. And
they haven’t done anything to their face.”
Larry Bowers, DDS
711 East Capitol St., SE
202-544-0086
Welcome to the Wild West. Sheridan’s 1874 Old
West Steakhouse was firmly in the saddle by New
Year’s Eve, to the near shock of co-owner Steve
Sabatini. He, partner Sandy Thompson, sta f f ,
and work crews had less than a month from getting
all approvals and permits to get the place
ready for revelry. It’s done, and it’s a wow.
Downstairs, a shaggy buffalo head surveys the
bar scene, and mirrored walls reflect the country
western hoofing on the dance floor.
In the upstairs dining room, red oriental rugs
lend warmth to the pale buffed floor, and crystal
chandeliers draw the eye to the ornate stamped
tin moldings. The effect is somehow both spare
and posh, with enough whimsy tossed in to
make it fun.
The menu is definitely cow country (though a
few nicely thought out vegetarian items are on
the bill): Miss Kitty ’s Filet is topped with oysters
and brie, buffalo steak is marinated in stout and
the 12 ounce New York strip is rubbed with
b l a ckening spices and crumbled bleu ch e e s e ,
topped with a roasted garlic demiglaze. Entrees
are priced from $10 to $23. There’s lighter fare
too, chili, salads and burgers for between $6-$8.
Pig out. At this place you can work it all off
after dinner. Sheridan’s is at 713 8th St., SE. 546-
6955.
Creating a Little Home Away from Home. Roasters
on the Hill will be back in a new incarnation this
Fe b ru a ry. Lori Johnston, owner of Ben and
Jerry’s, leased the coffee bar at 666 Pennsylvania
A venue, SE, redubbing it Sto mp i n’ Gro u n d s .
Renovations should now be underway.
Featured will be Roaster’s coffee and beans,
plus other hot and cold beverages and sandwiches.
Lori’s emphasis will be on creating a cozy
www.voiceofthehill.com 25
CELEBRATION 2000 JAZZ BRUNCH
SUNDAY, JANUARY 2, 2000 FROM 1-4 PM
MILLENNIUM NEW YEAR’S JAZZ CELEBRATION
DECEMBER 29 AND 30
Closed December 24 - 29, 1999 and
December 30, 1999 - January 1, 2000
424A 8TH STREET, SE ON CAPITOL HILL • 202-546-8308
WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY 6:30PM THRU CLOSING
SUNDAY 12-4PM
A CHAMPAGNE LOUNGE
AND GARDEN CAFE
Banana Cafe
& Piano Bar
Serving the Best Cuban,
Puerto Rican, & Mexican
Food in the City!
Open for lunch, dinner
& Sunday Brunch
No Cover!
Piano Bar
Upstairs
Tues-Sat
Performances
by Deena Javor
and Chuck Smith Happy Hour
Tues-Fri 5-7:30 Upstairs only
Drink Specials with Free Hors
d’oeuvres
500 8th St, SE
1 block east of Blue/Orange Eastern Market Metro / 202-543-5906
neighborhood gathering—and lingering—spot.
She says there will be “newspapers, magazines
and children’s book on hand, as well as two gaming
tables for those that want to play chess,
backgammon, cards or Chinese checkers.
S eve ral art i st friends are contributing uniqu e
to u ches, creating display ra cks and Sto mp i n’
G rounds mugs (that will be available for sale). Fo r
the re st of the re-do, Lori ’s buffing the hard wo o d
f l o o rs, painting the walls in earthy tones, and
putting in mellow antique furn i t u re and floor
l a mps. The wall that used to hold bins of beans
will be cleared for a black and white mural of
E a st e rn Market at the turn-of the (last) century.
M o st imp o rta n t ly, says Lori, “the ord e ri n g
counter will offer the speedy service and smiling
faces that everyone seems to be looking for.”
Papa Moved Mountains. Monique Greenwood,
executive editor of Essence, recently wrote a moving
story for her magazine about Greenwood’s
Transfer and Storage, the business her grandfather,
Benjamin Ordway Greenwood, founded in
DC in 1922. By the late 1970s the company was
the oldest Black-owned business in DC, and listed
as one of the country’s top 100 Black-owned
businesses.
It was not an entirely smooth progression from
beginning to then. When “Papa” wanted to
modernize in the late thirties, he “knocked on
countless doors before one small bank, National
Capital, put racial prejudice aside and granted a
line of credit to a Black man who always paid his
bills on time.” The National Capital Bank is still
here, still under the same family ownership, and
still making loans to those who pay their bills on
time.
NCB, by the way, reports record annual earnings
for 1999. The 111-year-old bank had a 10%
increase in net earnings, a 9.42% increase in
deposits, and those loans? They grew 6.8%, from
$ 6 8 , 025,393 to $72 , 6 54 , 202. National Capital
Bank. 316 Pennsylvania Ave., SE. 546-8000.
Alice Sells the House. When (in)famous fight
p ro m oter Ro ck Newman was having tro u b l e
moving his mini-mansion off Foxhall Road he
called in Alice Wilson, manager of Antique and
Contemporary Leasing, for a consult. Newman
and his wife had already moved out, and the cavernous
space was intimidating buyers. As Alice
told the Washington Po st in a recent Home
Section, “the living room was huge, about 40 by
50 feet, and people couldn’t figure out what to do
with it...So we set up four different seatings to
m a ke it look lived in and comfo rta b l e .” The
property, which the Newman’s purchased for
$1.2 million in 1974, sold for $1.9 million.
ACL frequently works with real estate agents
and homeowners to spiffy up houses for sale.
They’re called upon just as often by homebuyers,
and renters, who want to look settled—fast. If
you haven’t been in, don’t miss the third floor
bargain center, there are always hot deals on furniture
and accessories that are being moved out
of inventory. Antique and Contemporary Leasing
and Sales. 709 12th St., SE. 547-3030.
Winter Sale at Art & Soul. You got slippers, bon
bons and a scale. A copy of Dutch, and a pair of
rhinestone reading glasses. No slinky chemise.
No lacy jabot. And sadly, Santa fo r g ot th e
mink...again. Make it up to yourself. Cinderella
stuffs await (with reductions of up to 25%) at Art
& Soul, 225 Pennsylvania Ave., SE. 548-0105.
Whoa, Get a Bargain on a Braley? Going on now
at The Village—save 25-50% on winter clothing
(including fabulously soft Pashmina shawl s ) ,
jewelry and charming tchotchtkes from around
the world. AND, for the first time ever, 25% off a
selection of Alan Braley’s wondrous watercolors
in the upstairs gallery! The Village is at 705 North
Carolina Avenue, SE. 546-3040.
The Business Bits section is written by Voice editor
Stephanie Cavanaugh
Log On!
w w w. v o i c e o f t h e h i l l . c o m
Your daily newspaper
for Capitol Hill
WESTERN WEAR
WHERETHE REAL COWBOY SHOPS!
C h e ck out our
Holiday Wear &
Sale Items
202-546-5566
641 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE
Washington, DC
(1/2 block from the Eastern Market Metro)
26 www.voiceofthehill.com
Picture Framing
Frame of Mine
522 8th St.,SE 543-3030
See our ad on page 8
Newman Gallery and Custom Frames
511 11th St.,SE 544-7577
See our ad on page 31
Plumbing & Heating
Leakbusters Plumbing & Remodeling
202 544-5000
Real Estate
Valerie M. Blake
Prudential Carruthers Realtors
5025 Wisconsin Ave,NW 202-362-1348,x111
www.DCHomeQuest.com
Thom Burns
Coldwell Banker Real Estate
109 8th St. NE 547-5805
Larry C
Pardoe Real Estate
605 PA Ave.,SE 546-7000
Tom & Alice Faison
REMAX Real Estate
220 7th St.,SE 547-5881
John C. Formant
John C. Formant Real Estate
225 PA Ave.,SE 544-3900
Pardoe Real Estate
605 PA Ave.,SE 546-7000
See our ad on the back cover
Yarmouth Management
309 7th St.,SE 547-3511
Jackie von Schlegel
REMAX Real Estate
220 7th St.,547-5600
Phyllis Jane Young
Pardoe Real Estate
605 PA Ave.,SE 546-7000
Antiques
Antiques on the Hill
701 North Carolina Ave.,SE
See our ad on page 30
Attorneys
Davis & Gooch
920 Pennsylvania Avenue,SE 543-3600
Rick Halberstein & Karen Byrne
705 D St.,SE 543-1110
Arts Center
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop
545 7th St.,SE 547-6839
See our ad on page 14
Association
CHAMPS
621 PA Ave.,SE 547-7788
Bank
National Capital Bank
316 PA Ave.,SE 546-8000
See our ad on page 31
Book Buyer
Riverby Books
419 E. Capitol St.,SE 547-3228
See our ad on page 42
Chimney Cleaning
Winston’s Chimney Service
Washington DC (301)571-8546
See our ad on page 27
Church
Christ Church Washington Parish
620 G St.,SE 547-9300
See our ad on page 41
Clothing & Gifts
Art & Soul
225 PA Ave.,SE 548-0105
See our ad on page 25
Red River Western Wear
641 PA Ave.,SE 546-5566
See our ad on page 25
The Village
705 N. Carolina Ave.,SE 546-3040
See our ad on page 32
Computer Consultant
Better Computer Solutions
623 N. Carolina Ave.,SE 546-8084
See our ad on page 32
Drug Store
Grubbs Care Pharmacy
326 E Capitol SE 543-4400
See our ad on page 16
Garden and Landscape
Holler Landscapes
543-5172
See our ad on page 29
Ornamental Garden
544-7831
See our ad on page 20
Grocery
The 8th Street Market
419 8th St.,SE
Groceries Greens & Other Things!
Hardware
Fragers Hardware
1115 Pennsylvania Ave.,SE 543-6157
See our ad on page 23
Health & Fitness
GI Jane
645 Pennsylvania Ave.,SE 547-7906
See our ad on page 30
Home Furnishings
Woven History
311 7th St.,SE 543-1705
See our ad on page 29
Home Repair
Federal City Iron
321 K St.,NE 547-1945
See our ad on page 29
Handyman on the Hill
Washington DC 206-7185
See our ad on page 41
H&W Contracting, Ltd.
398-7117
See our ad on page 20
Hotel
Capitol Hill Suites
200 C St.,SE Washington DC 543-0209
See our ad on page 18
Income Tax Services
Jackson Hewitt Tax Service
8th St.,SE 554-8840
Mortgage Lenders
Apex Home Loans
1-800-914-8475,ext. 2075
See our ad on page 13
Pet Supplies
Doolittle’s Pet Supply
224 7th St.,SE 544-8710
See our ad on page 24
Photography
Asman Photo
924 Penn. Ave,SE 547-7713
See our ad on page 8
Motophoto
666 PA Ave.,SE 547-2100
See our ad on page 11
Business Directory Listings:
Voice of the Hill is including a yellow-pages style directory of businesses and services that cater to the Capitol Hill community. To
be included in the directory businesses must commit to a one-year contract,payable in advance by check, Visa or Mastercard.
The annual fee is $250. Display advertisers on annual contracts will be included in the directory at no additional charge.
Each business will be given three lines in the directory; two must be used for the company name,address and phone number. An
extra line is available for your name,a description of your business or service,or a direction to see your ad. Additional lines may
be added at an annual cost of $60 per line (per year). If you would like to be included in the next directory, please fill in the following
form and send it,along with your check or payment information, to: The Voice of the Hill, 120 11th St.,SE, Washington,DC
20003. If you have questions please call Bruce Robey at 544-0703.
Your Name:_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Company Name: ________________________________________________________________________________________________
Address: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Phone: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Business Description: (30 character maximum) _____________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Please charge my Mastercard or Visa
Name on Card:__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Card Number: _______________________________________________________________________Expiration Date:____________
Real Estate Settlement
Capital Home Title
703 D St.,SE Washington DC 544-4300
See our ad on page 27
Congressional Title
650 PA Ave.,SE 544-0800
See our ad on page 28
Eastern Market Title
210 7th St.,SE 546-3100
See our ad on page 32
Restaurants
2 Quail
320 Massachusetts Ave. NE 543-8030
See our ad on page 17
Banana Café
400 8th St.,SE 543-5906
See our ad on page 25
Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream
327 7th St.,SE 546-CAKE
See our ad on page 30
Bluestone Cafe
327 7th St.,SE 547-9007
See our ad on page 19
Caffe Italiano
1129 PA Ave.,SE 544-5500
See our ad on page 29
Ellington’s on 8th
424A 8th St SE 546-8308
See our ad on page 25
Hawk ’n’ Dove
329 PA Ave.,SE 543-3300
See our ad on page 29
Las Placitas
518 8th St.,SE 543-3700
See our ad on page 28
Park Café
106 13th St.,SE 543-0184
See our ad on page 41
White Tiger
301 Mass. Ave.,NE 546-5900
See our ad on page 33
Business Serv i c e s
www.voiceofthehill.com 27
Business Serv i c e s
Salon
RPM Salon
225 PA Ave.,SE 543-6481
See our ad on page 27
Social Services
Capitol Hill Group Ministr y
421 Seward Sq.,SE 544-0385
Schools
Capitol Hill Day School
210 S. Carolina Ave.,SE 547-2244
See our ad on page 37
Edmond Burke School
2955 Upton St.,NW 362-8882
See our ad on page 37
Levine School of Music
2801 Upton St.,NW 686-9772
St Peter’s School
422 3rd St.,SE 544-1618
See our ad on page 36
Spiritual Advisors
Corrin Bennett
920 G St.,SE 543-5825
See ad on page 33
Gabrielle Hill
639 E. Capitol SE 544-438
See ad on page 33
Vacation/Travel Consultatns
Jan Cammarata
Judiciary Express Travel
7th & Penn SE, 547-3007
Yoga Studio
Dancing Heart Center for Yoga
221 5th St.,NE 544-0841
See our ad on page 33 Winston’s
Quality Service since 1976
Cleanings • Repairs • Relinings
Expert second opinion
Air duct cleaning
301-571-8546
Licensed • Insured • Certified
202-CHIMNEY
(244-6639)
Recommended by
Washingtonian Magazine
1984-1987
DCHIC #3615
Chimney Ser v i c e
Free Hair Masque
with shampoo, cut and blow
dry at regular price
Tuesday & Wednesday only
Thru February 18, 2000
(must mention ad when booking appointment)
————————
“On Track” Facial
with skin scanner
$25
with this ad
Tuesday-Friday Only
Thru February 18, 2000
————————
Classic Spa Manicure
1/2 Price
with this ad
Tuesday-Friday Only
Thru February 18, 2000
225 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE
202-543-6481
www.RPMSALONS.com RPM HAIR & SKIN CARE CENTER
CAPITAL
home title, llc
703 D Street, SE
Washington, DC 20003
Phone 202 544-4300
FAX (202) 544-7876
E-mail
capitalhometitle@erols.com
Michael Hines
Other Settlement Locations
Georgetown Chevy Chase
Columbia, MD Camp Springs, MD
Rockville, MD Annapolis, MD
Bowie, MD Greenbelt, MD
Crofton, MD Baltimore, MD
Across from the
Eastern Market Metr o
17 years
51 Stars*
LA COLLINE
*A Washingtonian Magazine
Three Star “Blue Ribbon Winner”
since 1982
Log On!
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Your daily newspaper
for Capitol Hill
Capitol Hill’s Best French Dining Value
Serving Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
(closed Sunday)
Private dining rooms for groups of 20 to 80
Complimentary parking in the
building garage after 5PM
400 North Capitol St., NW 202-737-0400
28 www.voiceofthehill.com
d o w nL o a d
Salvadorian and Mexican Cancun Cantina is now
Cuisine and Great Margaritas known as
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Buy one entree, get a Great Mexican & NEW
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We have been located on
Capitol Hill for more than 20
years serving the District of
Columbia and Maryland
Let us make your refinance,
purchase or sale hassle free
with no stress
Call us
202-544-0800
650 Pennsylvania Ave., SE
Suite 170
Washington, DC 20003
St. Coletta’s School vs. The Forces of
Preservation
Point/Counterpoint
The St. Coletta’s School’s plan to construct a new
facility on Capitol Hill has run into some opposition
from the Capitol Hill Restoration Society
(CHRS) and DC’s Historic Preservation Review
Board (HPRB). The school, which has cared for
children and adults with physical and mental
disabilities in their Old Town, Alexandria complex
for many years, is hoping to build a DC
b ra n ch in the 1200 block of Pe n n s ylva n i a
Avenue, SE.
Nancy Met z g e r, chair of CH R S ’s Histo ri c
District Committee, says the issue is not with the
school. Her committee agrees that St. Coletta’s
“is a fine organization with an excellent reputation
for care of the handicapped.” They do not
oppose various elements of the plan, including
tearing down two badly deteriorated structures
on Pennsylvania Avenue, and moving a third
further down the block.
Metzger’s committee feels the architect’s plan
for the school “is headed in an acceptable direction,”
though they would like to see some modifications
in the design to make the building
more compatible with Hill architecture. “They’re
all issues,” says Metzger, “that can be worked
out.”
The problem piece is on E Street, SE. In the center
of the block is a shabby little shack that turns
out to have great historic merit. It’s a shotgun
house—so named because if you fired your musket
through the front door it would exit through
the back door. The style is rare in DC, although
common in places like New Orleans. This one
happens not only to be architecturally rare, it is
also one of the Hill’s oldest structures. The two
front rooms (it’s just three rooms deep) date back
to the 1850’s.
St. Coletta’s would like to pave the alley alongside
the house and use it as an entrance for their
school buses. For buses to have clear access to the
school’s sheltered entrance, St. Coletta’s would
need to demolish the back of the house, which
was added in the 1930’s, and the large brick outbuilding
that was erected in about 1917. The
school is willing to restore the original portion of
the house.
Sharon Raimo, a Hill resident and executive
d i re c tor of St. Colet ta’s, feels this E St re et
entrance is essential to their plan. These children
have severe handicaps and must be able to reach
the school safely from their buses—not be put off
on Pennsylvania Ave. The fear is that they might
dash out into traffic.
But Metzger argues that the 1200 block of E
Street is a “charming residential block, with a
great number of architectural styles. [The shotgun]
is restorable and could be a residence for a
single person or a couple. It has parking and a
brick out-building usable as an artist’s studio or
writer’s loft.” Metzger notes that there’s a similar
house on 9th Street, SE between G and E that was
nicely restored a few years ago.
Beyond danger to the house, CHRS has other
issues with the plan to create a bus entrance on E
Street. “Making a private alley out of a residential
lot is a terrible precedent,” says Metzger. “If we
allow this for a good cause, who’s to say what the
next request will be.”
Then there are the other houses along E Street
that would have noise and exhaust from buses
for 45 minutes (Raimo’s estimate) each morning
and afternoon. And there is Watkins Elementary
School on the north side of the street, whose
children would be exposed to hazards from the
additional bus traffic.
HPRB has yet another issue, the brick outbuilding.
Their report says that it may have had
original use as a “cottage industry” business,
“once typical on Capitol Hill, particularly for its
working-class residents.” They recommend that
archeological testing be done on the property.
St. Coletta’s was to have met with HPRB on
December 16 to discuss the plan, but the meeting
was deferred until later this month.
A Po i n t / C o u n t e rpoint with position sta t ements
from St. Coletta’s, and the Restoration
Society and HPRB is now on line at www.voiceofthehill.
com, and readers are weighing in on
both sides.
A Capitol Hill snail darter…and its prettified cousin.
www.voiceofthehill.com 29
311 & 315 7th Street, SE • 202.543.1705
www.wovenhistory.com
Store Hours: 10-6, Tue-Sun. Eastern Market Metro
Woven Hi s t o ry and Silk Ro a d
Federal City Iron, Ltd.
All Ornamental Ironwork
Expert Cast Iron Stair Repairs
Window Bars & Security Gates
Fencing & Tree Boxes
Metal Repairs
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Jerry McCully is representative of many of the
pro-St. Coletta forces, saying “Tear this eyesore
down. I walk past this property daily and cannot
believe that anyone in their right mind would
consider trying to save this ugly piece of slum. If
the school is going to beautify the blight that has
occupied Pennsylvania Ave. for so many years,
l et them help bring a little sunshine to “E”
Street.”
Siding with the pre s e rva t i o n i sts is St e p h e n
Morris, who writes “It seems that all the invective
and animus being directed at the Capitol
Hill Re sto ration Society and the Histo ri c
Preservation Review Board in this case should
more properly be aimed at the property owner
who has held this property for years and let it
decay to the point where neighbors are desperate
for anything to replace it—this person, not CHRS
or the HPRB is the true villain...The shotgun
house is historic, no matter how small, ugly, and
run down. DC’s historic districts are not in place
only to protect large, conventionally attractive
properties built for rich people—working-class
residences such as this one are part of our history
and deserve to be preserved.”
Check it out, have your say.
Spencer’s Storm
Readers Take Issue with Voice Columnist’s School
Column
Duncan Spencer’s article on creating a charter
high school for the Hill in last month’s issue of
the Voice stirred up a tempest. The Voice has
re c e i ved quite a few let t e rs and e-mails, and
promises of more to come. All were sent by parents
who are committed to quality education in
our public schools, and working hard to make it
happen. All were very thoughtful, and deserving
of publication. Since most were very lengthy,
this was not possible. We chose to excerpt from
some of the best:
Wrote Randy Norton, “Duncan Spencer’s col -
umn in December’s edition was a terrible disappointment
to me... Mr. Spencer apparently felt
that to write an article extolling the benefits of
charter schools it was necessary to disparage the
public schools on the Hill.
I have no complaint with Mr. Spencer’s argu -
ment that a charter high school on the Hill
might be a good education alternative for Hill
students... However, as a parent who is about to
complete seventeen years with two children in
the DC public schools, and as the schools coord
i n a tor for this paper who has re p o rted th e
achievements of the Hill public school students
for the past nine months, I know how misinformed
Mr. Spencer is and how damaging the
broad stereotypes he repeats can be.
I am not Pollyanna. I know that there have
been and remain problems in the DC Public
Schools. Any parent, teacher or principal has
sto ries of how “Dow n tow n ,” as the centra l
s chool bure a u c racy is unive rs a l ly known, has
short-changed a school or stifled a promising initiative.
But at the same time, every one of us connected
with the public schools knows dozens of
stories of a parent, teacher, or administrator stepping
in and solving these problems. And it’s getting
better...”
Linda Nickerson feels that the “article was a
slap in the face to all the hundreds of parents
who have dedicated countless thousands of
hours of volunteer work to the public schools on
Capitol Hill, and an insult to their children who
have attended those schools, received outstanding
education’s there, and gone on to succeed at
the schools of their choice...”
Jeff Serfass adds, “My respect for my favorite
paper, the Voice of the Hill, just plummeted. The
19 November 1999 article by what I assume is
your new school critic, Duncan Spencer, is an
affront to all of us who have been working hard
within the public school system to make the
Capitol Hill Cluster School an option we can all
respect... There are two sad points to be made
about his off-base article: 1) Those of us using the
Cluster Schools strongly disag ree with his negative
caricature of public schools on Capitol Hill;
and 2) Many outside this school system probably
share Spencer’s misguided views.
The schools are what we as a society want to
make of them. We, as parents of three, have chosen
to support this public institution for the benefit
of all children and find them to be a wonderful
way to bring up we l l - rounded yo u n g st e rs
with an ability to interact with a diverse society.
And the notion that “the sad fact is that DC public
schools are not how to get the Hill’s sons and
daughters in Harvard or Cornell”.... well that is
flat wrong. We are proud of our son, educated
through the Cluster Schools and on through
Wilson High School, another public school... he
graduates from Dartmouth this spring. He never
felt cheated out of a good education.”
Gary Carleton chose to weigh in on the website
under the header “Duncan Spencer Needs to
Do His Homework Regarding Public Schools.”
Carleton says, “Duncan Spencer wrote quite an
irresponsible and inaccurate article in this past
month’s Voice of the Hill regarding the “horrific”
state of our Capitol Hill public schools (including
the Capitol Hill Cluster School). For a man
who claims to have a lot of reporting experience,
Spencer would get an “F” for that article—given
the fact that he did not do his homework in
preparing the article...Parents, be smarter than
Spencer. Do what you tell your children to do—
Do your homewo rk in selecting the pro p e r
school for your child. Money does not buy everything.
Check out the public schools. Talk to the
teachers (many of whom have their children in
the public schools) and the students. Come
when there is an open house and find out that
there are quality public schools on Capitol Hill.”
M a rk Ecke nwiler “seconded” Carl eto n’s
remarks. “...It’s one thing to acknowledge that
DCPS in the aggregate has many problems. (I’d
be the first to agree about that.) It’s another
thing entirely to dismiss each and every DCPS
school on the Hill, when the evidence of success
—and of satisfied parents and students—is so
readily apparent in places. Instead of perpetuating
a one-sided, outdated view of the public
school options available on the Hill, perhaps [the
Voice] could provide cur rent, informed coverage
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the outdoor re c reational facilities which will
include regulation football, baseball, and soccer
fields complete with bleachers, lighting, and an
announcers box. Marines will have first dibs, but
the fields will also be available to residents of
nearby public housing and neighborhood sports
teams.
This new discovery may have an impact on
some of these construction plans, but Nancy
Kassner says it’s way too soon to say. A full report
on the findings, and what needs to be done, will
take three to four months. That will not delay
progress on the barracks, said Lucas, since funding
for construction won’t be allocated until later
this year.
(Thanks to Brian Stansberry for being the ear
to the ground on this story)
The Millennium Arts Center
It’s Showtime on I Street
Pssst. Something very, very exciting is happening
just a blink off the Hill at 65 I St., SW. Would
you believe The Millennium Arts Center, a combination
Torpedo Factory, gallery and art school
e red belonged to seve ral houses, including a
Not l ey Maddox, and to the original East e rn
Market, which was built in the early 19th century
and stood at this location until around 1870.
Among the artifacts uncovered—Kassner has not
seen them all—were pieces of pearlware, bluish
tinted ta b l ewa re manufactured bet ween 17 9 0
and 1820. She surmises that these items probably
belonged to the occupants of the houses, not
to the market.
Captain Lucas says the investigation will not
have an impact on the demolition of the four
Capper buildings scheduled for re p l a c e m e n t ,
since that work will not disturb the findings. The
buildings will be razed in the next three weeks.
The Marines intend to construct a four-story,
166-room building to house the approximately
300 enlisted men and women who are now scattered
about the metropolitan area. Additional
indoor and outdoor re c reational facilities are
also planned, as well as a 3 1/2 story-parking
garage that will have space for 273 cars and 15
motorcycles.
A particular boon to the community will be
of what’s really happening in our local public
schools. That, and not the usual bromides about
DCPS, would better serve the Hill community.”
To the parents who wrote, and the parents
who haven’t yet put furious fingers to keyboard,
we hope the article by Laura Scott on the Cluster
School on page 34 of this issue, and the overview
of early childhood education options by Susan
Chapin on page 36, will provide the necessary
balance.
At the risk of stirring up another storm, please
keep in mind that Spencer’s article was intended
to explore the idea of creating a charter high
school for Capitol Hill. Currently our options are
few, and many folks are now sending their child
ren across town to Wilson, School Wi th o u t
Walls, or one of the private schools. There are
plenty of parents who would like an opt i o n
that’s closer to home. So, can we talk?
Can You Dig It?
Marines Uncover Buried Treasure on Capper Lot
How serendipitous can you get? In this issue
Celeste McCall writes about finding shells and
shards of various stuffs in our backyards, while
Bonny Wolf takes on the early days of Eastern
Market. Then, just a few days before we go to
press, the Marines begin turning up buried treasures,
and what may be the foundation of the
original Eastern Market, at 7th and Virginia Ave.,
SE.
M a rine Public Affairs Officer, Captain Ke n
Lucas, says contractors were digging test trenches
near the Arthur Capper Housing Project ball
field on January 18th. The work was in preparation
for demolition of several buildings and construction
of new bachelor quarters and recreational
facilities on the site. Lucas says the worke
rs got about four fe et down, and “whoops!
We’ve got something here.”
What they’d turned up were building foundations,
old house bits, and various artifacts, all
cushioned and protected in layers of fill.
The Marines dutifully called in DC’s Historic
Preservation Division. Nancy Kassner, an ar cheologist
with the department, says she hasn’t yet
seen the report of the archeologist assigned to
the project, and so was extremely cautious with
her comments, stressing that “the research is
extremely preliminary.”
But she suspects that the foundations uncov-
New home to the arts in Southwest.
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that will also offer a sculpture garden, a café, an
a p a rt m e n t / h otel for visiting art i sts, re h e a rs a l
and performance space for local theaters, ballet
companies, and other performers, a summer arts
camp for young people, and retail space?
This is not pie in the sky. Behind the grand
scheme is master showman Bill Wooby, grandson
of the swo rd - s wa l l owing, knife - th row i n g ,
tattooed lady of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show
and the show’s musical conductor. The son of
restaurateurs—and himself a mean hand in the
kitchen. A many-time nominee for the Mayors
award who has 8 volumes of press clippings from
his nearly 30 years in the Washington arts scene.
This is the guy who rented
a projector and flashed
Ro b e rt Mappleth o rp e ’s
controversial nudes on the
front of the Corcoran when
Jesse Helms demanded the
cancellation of the show
back in 1987.
This is the guy who
opened The Collecto r
re sta u rant and ga l l e ry at
Dupont Circle and later created Art on the 6th
Floor, a celebrated gallery and exhibit space in
the Washington Design Center.
Now, after years of wrangling with the DC
D e p a rtment of Education over this deal, Bill
Wooby has finally moved into the old Randall Jr.
High School with a lease with option to buy. He
hopes to finalize the purchase of the 125,000
square foot “surplus” school with its 700-seat
auditorium, gym, 70 rooms, parking for 180, and
courtyard big enough for a sculpture garden and
café by early spring.
M e a nwhile eve ry th i n g ’s falling into place.
Artists and illustrators will begin setting up studios
by the end of Januar y. This summer two 50-
seat movie houses will open, featuring foreign
and independent films. By late summer or early
fall a large outdoor sculpt u re exhibit will be
established in the courtyard.
Museums, which have been in on the concept
from the beginning, are calling about space for
large-scale exhibitions. Theater and dance companies,
who’ve also been eagerly waiting, are
negotiating for use of the stage and the gymnasium
for rehearsals and performances.
Then there’s the developing connection with
DC Parks and Recreation. Wooby’s working with
Robert Newman, the department’s new director,
on several arts projects for the spring. Teens will
be interviewing senior citizens for a filmed oral
h i sto ry, using equipment donated by Apple
C o mp u t e rs and Sony. Another project will
involve both teens and adults in creating handmade
tile furniture for neighborhood parks.
I t’s all coming to g ether so ra p i d ly th a t
Wo o by’s already thinking of expanding.
Celebrated architect Michael Graves has been
through several times in the past few months, at
f i rst discussing the hotel design, then a new
wing, and now a complete renovation.
W hy the Randall School and South we st ?
Because it was affordable. “Everyone wanted me
downtown on 7th Street. There is not a building
cheap enough downtown to take over and turn
into an art center. This location is a mystery to
most people, divided off as it is by the freeway
and the railroad tracks. It’s like an untouched
castle. To be able to live on the river for very little
money? It’s unbelievable. The views are great
and no one knows how beautiful it is.” If Bill
Wooby has his way, they’ll soon be finding out.
Bryan School Sale Update
Market Rate Condos and Townhomes Planned for
SE Site
The Bryan School in the 13 00 block of
Independence Avenue was re c e n t ly sold to
No rth e rn -Virginia based deve l o p e rs, Eakin/
Youngentaub Associates (EYA). Toby Millman,
director of acquisition and development for EYA,
says they hope to finalize the contract with DC
Public Schools by the end of January.
The tentative plan is to retain the older school
building that fronts on Independence and convert
it into condominiums. The adjacent annex,
which was built in the 1950’s, will be razed. The
rest of the lot, which includes the playground
and parking areas, will be filled with approxim
a t e ly 45 3-sto ry townhouses that will be
reached from a new through-street that will run
b et ween Independence and South Caro l i n a
Avenues. Houses will face onto the new road and
the avenues.
Millman says that the new complex will be
similar in feel to one now being constructed at
7th and G Streets, SW, a block off the Maine
Avenue waterfront. However, EYA will work with
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n e i g h b o rs, neighborhood groups and th e
Historic Preservation Review Board to make the
design consistent with the immediate neighborhood.
“That is always the goal,” st re s s e s
Millman. “ In five years, once it’s worn down a
little, it will look like it has been there a hundred
years.”
It is anticipated that the new homes will range
in price from $250,000 to $400,000, which is
also similar to the pricing in the South we st
development. Millman says he’s “very optimistic
about what can be sold. EYA tries to build a little
above the market, since new construction always
sells for a little bit more. That does bring the
prices of the surrounding homes up.” The day
EYA announced that they’d be constructing 100
new homes in another new townhouse complex
at 13th and V, NW, “prices for houses in the area
shot up by $100,000 immediately.”
Millman estimates that it will take 12 months
to go through the zoning and historic review
process and construction will begin immediately
after receiving those approvals.
If you’re interested in learning more about
Eakin/Youngentaub developments you can visit
their website, www.eya.com, or the 7th and G
Street, SW site. There’s a sales trailer on the lot.
Community Achievement Award
Winners Announced
Trio Will be Feted at May 17th Gala
The CHAMPS Community Foundation has
announced that Michael Kahn, Bruce Brennan
and Robbie Scharf have been selected as recipients
of this ye a r’s Capitol Hill Community
Achievement Awards.
Kahn is the multi-award winning artistic director
of the Shakespeare Theatre. Brennan, a longtime
Hill resident, is (among many other things)
a board member of the Capitol Hill Art s
Workshop, an avid supporter of the Capitol Hill
Cluster Schools, the Capitol Hill Day School, and
the Boy Scouts. Robbie Sch a rf has been th e
a d o red ch i l d re n’s libra rian at the South e a st
Branch Library since 1978.
E a ch year the Community Ach i eve m e n t
Awards recognize and celebrate the contributions
made by outstanding Capitol Hill citizens
to the life of our community. Recipients will be
honored at a black tie gala in the Great Hall of
the Folger Shake s p e a re Libra ry on May 17.
that the project was moving forward with the
appropriation of $100 million, to be augmented
with donations from individuals and/or corporations,
for design and construction of the facility.
In addition, Congress’s 18-member, bipartisan
Capitol Preservation Committee (CPC), which
includes representatives from both sides of the
Hill, was assigned responsibility for the project.
The Architect described the chief features of the
Center and explained the rationale for many of
the decisions made. At an appropriate time, the
CPC will make an official announcement regarding
specific design features, cost and schedule.
The Architect indicated that the next stage of the
process would include a study of the impact of
construction vehicles and visitor access during
construction. The Architect agreed, in principle,
to meet with the community as soon as possible
once the formal announcement of the project
has been made by the CPC, and to solicit community
input at appropriate times during design
development and construction planning.
On other issues, the Architect reported that
the renovation of the Botanic Garden is still on
schedule for completion in September/October
2000, exclusive of replanting. Reinstallation of
plants will require another six to nine months.
Initial construction of permanent Capitol security
features is scheduled to begin shortly around
the Senate Office Buildings. Final designs for the
remainder of the perimeter security are under
review. Funding to complete the perimeter security
will be included in the AOC’s request for FY
2001.
The Architect indicated that construction of
the Senate Child Care Center was complete, but
that the Center’s Board of Directors had not yet
officially accepted the facility. He had recommended
to the Center’s Board of Director’s that
the community have an opportunity to tour the
center, in all likelihood after January 1, 2000.
The Stanton Park Neighborhood Association has
the lead on coordinating an open house. There
has been no decision on the disposition of the
e x i sting Senate Child Care Center. The
Congressional Annex at 501 First Street, SE will
be turned into a temporary dormitory for House
Pages.
Recalling previous efforts to discipline tour bus
traffic, CHRS indicated that it intended to create
a task force to address the continuing problem of
tour buses for the Capitol Hill community. This
Proceeds from the dinner provide funds for the
Dr. Arnold Keller Jr. Award, a $7500 g rant that is
presented annually to a neighborhood organiza -
tion, and is the largest grant available through
the CHAMPS Community Foundation. This will
be the 17th award ceremony.
Meeting with the Architect of the
Capitol
On the Visitors Center, the Botanic Gardens,and
Tour Bus Fumes
Representatives of a variety of residential and
business organizations met with Architect of the
Capitol, Alan Hantman, on November 22. They
were given a briefing on several Federal projects
that will have, or are having, a significant impact
on the neighborhood. Hans Moening of th e
Capitol Hill Restoration Society wrote the following
report for the January issue of the Capitol
Hill Restoration Society Newsletter, which is now
on line at www.voiceofthehill.com:
“On November 22, Capitol Hill community
o r ganizations resumed the ongoing dialogue
w i th the Architect of the Capitol, Alan
Hantman, and his staff on issues of mutual intere
st. Community organizations re p re s e n t e d
included the [Restoration] Society, the Stanton
Park Neighborhood Association, CHAMPS, and
Councilmember Ambrose’s office. ANC6A and
6B representatives were unable to attend.
With respect to the Capitol Visitors Center to
be built on the East Plaza, the Architect reported
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vidual voices made a beautiful sound that was far
greater than the sum of its parts.”
Watch the Voice calendar for announcements
of future concerts.
The Download section of The Voice is just a taste of
the news that has been posted to www.voiceofthe -
hill.com over the last few weeks — articles and news
bites, gathered from weeks of web-writings, that we
think are worth repeating in the paper. Unless other -
wise noted, all Download articles are written by
Voice editor Stephanie Cavanaugh.
concerts in the December 15th Washington Post
Style section:
“Where the Capitol Hill Chorale scored points
over more polished, pro fessional ri vals in its
Christmas concert on Sunday was in the immediacy
and human dimensions of the Lutheran
Church of the Reformation.
This was music for the dozens, not the thousands,
performed in a small, acoustically clear
space. When the chorale processed in, the sound
it made was enveloping. The brass qu i n t et ,
which would have registered as atmospherically
distant in a g rander venue, had real punch. Even
Taiwanese soprano Chieh-Mei Jamie Wu, with
her modest lyric soprano, had a sizable sound in
these surroundings.
The most striking music belonged to a substantial
early work of Benjamin Britten’s—his
rarely heard “A Boy Was Born.” A melancholy
piece dwelling on Herrod’s slaughter of the innocents,
this sequence of medieval text settings has
an arresting theme-and-variations structure, and
occupies a musical ground between the stark
angularity of the composer’s “St. Nicholas” and
the rarified charms of his “Ceremony of Carols.”
It would have benefited from a less approximate
choral response, but it held a brooding fascination
nonetheless.
The singing in general was characterized by
tentative entrances and limitations in range and
virtuosity. But under Jeffrey Watson’s lovingly
attentive baton, this aggregation of decent inditaskforce
should include appropriate representation
from the Ar chitect, the Metropolitan Police
Department and other city agencies, community
business and residential organizations and elect -
ed city officials. The task force will address issues
ranging from enfo rcement of existing laws
through improved signage.”
Capitol Hill Resident Ann Geracimos
Has Got Herself Hung—Downtown.
By Maggie Hall
Ann Geracimos is well known for her journalistic
writings. But what she has now revealed, is that
when she does her famed Washington Ti m e s
interviews of personalities, she wields the pen in
two ways.
In between taking notes, she also dashes off
lightening sketches of her subjects.
Now her secondary talent is on display—at
Borders Books, 18th & L, NW. Ann’s caricatures
of famed faces will be exhibited until the end of
the month.
Invitations to the opening were copies of her
rendition of Bill Bradley. A “fine” print of the
original is on its way to the candidate.
Capitol Hill Chorale Serenaded by
Post’s Joe Banno
Kudos to Conductor Jeffrey Watson
The Capitol Hill Chorale merited a nice write-up
from reviewer Joe Bano in a wrap-up of holiday
The Capitol Hill Chorale scores a hit.
See latebreaking Download on page 39
34 www.voiceofthehill.com
C a p i t a lKids
BY LAURA SCOTT What makes a school “successful?”
What ingredients are re qu i red to
create an environment where children
learn, parents participate, and
teachers are devoted and creative? What does it
take to create and maintain a school where parents,
teachers and administrators share a high
level of trust and where there is substantial agreement
among those groups about both what children
need and about how well the school is
meeting those needs?
For over 15 ye a rs, the Capitol Hill Clust e r
School has wrestled with these issues. Have they
succeeded? Can they measure their “success”?
What remains to be done?
The Cluster School
The Capitol Hill Cluster School is a DC public
s chool that serves Hill students from Pre -
Kindergarten through 8th grade. It comprises
three campuses: the Peabody Early Childhood
Center at Stanton Park houses Pre-Kindergarten
and Kindergarten, and the Reggio-Emilia SWS
ch a rter; Watkins Elementa ry at 12 th & E SE
serves 1st through 4th grades and also houses a
public Montessori program; and Stuart-Hobson
Middle School at 5th and E NE serves grades 5
through 8 in the Smithsonian Museum partnership
program.
Leadership
It is increasingly evident that the “success” of a
school depends in no small part on leadership.
This was always particularly true of the Cluster
School, which exists because of the determined
and visionary leadership of its fo u n d i n g
Principal Veola M. Jackson, and its active and
involved parent/teacher leaders.
There is no doubt that the Cluster suffered
from divided and divisive leadership in the years
following Ms. Jackson’s untimely death in 1991.
The resulting revolving door in the Principal
position and the split of the school into two
administrative units visibly weakened the concept
of “one school with one progressive educational
philosophy from Pre - K i n d e r ga rt e n
through 8th grade,” and thus reduced the appeal
of the school to the community.
This decline was stemmed in the last two years
with the creation of a leadership team committed
to the Cluster concept and to the educational
excellence required to maintain the appeal of
the school. Jennifer Smith, in her second year as
the Principal of both Peabody and Watkins, is a
returning Cluster alum. She began her career as a
student teacher under Veola Jackson at Stuart-
Hobson, and returned to the Cluster in the fall of
1998, after gaining administrative experience in
another school district. Current Stuart-Hobson
Principal Rita Johnson is also a Cluster alum,
h aving served prev i o u s ly as an Assista n t
P rincipal. Last ye a r, befo re ret u rning to th e
Cluster, she was the director of the Smithsonian
Institution Museum program, which is in partn
e rship with St u a rt-Hobson in the museum
schools program.
Johnson and Smith are wo rking closely to
align the school with the original vision of a single
continuum of pro gre s s i ve, ch i l d - c e n t e re d
education.
Coinciding with the return of strong, skilled
and committed Principals at the Cluster has
been the initiative by Superintendent Arl e n e
Acke rman to rev i talize the “Local Sch o o l
Restructuring Teams (LSRT)” at District schools.
The LSRT is the pare n t / t e a ch e r / a d m i n i st ra to r
body that functions as a management team at
the local school site. Last year Ackerman identified
the LSRT as the entity responsible for the
development of the school plan and budget at
DC public schools. This newly defined responsibility
has given the always committed and vocal
parents and teachers of the Cluster School a real
place in the decision-making about the priorities
and direction of the school.
Freedom and Flexibility (and
increased resources!)
This local school planning process provides the
Cluster School with both the increased resources
and the freedom and flexibility necessary to fully
realize the founders’ original vision—a school
w h e re all the ch i l d ren in the neighborh o o d ,
regardless of their socio-economic status, can
expect to succeed and achieve together.
Under the Superintendent’s new funding formula,
where schools are funded according to the
number and type of students they attract, all
three campuses saw an increase. Over $400,000
was spread across the campuses to allow the
school to create programs that serve the wide
range in student needs and abilities.
The Cluster developed a plan that provides
challenging opportunities for advanced st udents,
an interesting and motivating cur riculum
for students ach i eving at gra d e - l evel, and
enhanced and enri ched services for st u d e n t s
who need more resources to reach grade-level
performance.
Class sizes are small—only 20 students (or
fewer) per class through grade 4, and fewer than
25 per class in the upper grades. Full-time educational
aides are in all classrooms through the 1st
grade, allowing a low student/teacher ratio in the
critical early learning years. Funds have also been
allocated for both reading and math specialists.
In addition to small class sizes and the tradi-
A Successful Public
School on the Hill?
I t ’s a New Century
for the Cluster.
www.voiceofthehill.com 35
tional special subject offe rings of visual art s ,
vocal music, PE, technology and libra ry, th e
C l u ster School is also now able to prov i d e
Spanish, photography, and creative movement.
There are six computer labs available to the students
at Watkins and Stuart-Hobson, in addition
to the multiple computers in each classroom,
and Internet connection. The PTA continues to
provide substantial resources directly to classroom
teachers and in support of library improvements,
with over $60,000 invested in the three
campus libraries over the past four years.
Visible Success
In the final analysis, the best measure of a
school’s success is how desirable it is. At every
entry point into the Cluster School—Peabody
and the Reggio-Emilia SWS charter, and in the
Montessori prog ram at Watkins, every available
space is filled every year and there is always a
waiting list. Peabody and Watkins are at capacity,
and the museum program at Stuart-Hobson
has only a few openings in the 5th and 6th
grades. The school currently serves over 1,0 00
students, and an estimated 700-plus families.
True to the fo u n d e rs’ vision, the Clust e r
School has a solid identity as a neighborhood
school. Its parents and teachers have a visible
commitment to the school and the community.
Over one-quarter of the school’s teachers are parents
or grandparents of current or former Cluster
S chool students. The fierce pride in—and
extraordinary dedication to—the school is evident
every year on the first Sunday in May, when
Say Goodbye (Sort of) to Robbi!
Southeast Children’s Librarian Retires
Chances are that anyone who has raised a child
on Capitol Hill in the last twenty years knows
Robbi Scharfe, beloved children’s librarian at the
Southeast Branch Library since 1978.
This year Robbi is one of three members of the
community who will be honored with a
Community Achievement Award at a May gala at
the Folger Shakespeare Library. Nicky Cymrot,
p resident of the CHAMPS Community Fo u ndation,
the organization that supervises th e
awards, says the award committee had no idea
that Robbi retired in December. They just felt she
was deserving of honor.
A more modest, but equally festive, celebration
of Robbi is planned for February 6 from 2-6PM at
the Southeast Library. No white-gloved waiters,
or candles, but re f reshments will be serve d ,
toasts will be made, and everyone is invited.
Robbi says she’s looking forward to playing in
her garden, but she’ll continue to do her crafts
program for kids on Tuesday evenings—on a volunteer
basis.
Chamberlain Students Run
for the Arts
Kids Raise Over $2,813
The Chamberlain “Champions” placed second
in Wa s h i n g ton in fundraising for the 19 9 9
Young Audiences Run for the Arts. The school
raised over $2,813 in this first year of participation.
Chamberlain also boasted several individual
city-wide winners: Keith Riley and Aneika
Wilson were winner and runner-up respectively
among kindergarten students; Matthew Draper
was the grade 5 city-wide ru n n e r-up and
Hezekiah Williams, III, received first g rade honorable
mention. The school and students were
h o n o red at the Sixteenth Annual Awa rd s
Ceremony on December 3 at Jefferson Junior
High. Ms. Judith Dorvil coordinated the Run for
the Arts for the school.
What’s All the Buzz?
New publication to hit Hill Streets this June
Watch for a new Capitol Hill publication this
June, Buzz: The Magazine with News You Can Use.
Students at the Stuart Hobson Museum Magnet
School announced the name of their new news
magazine at a press conference (with very good
cookies) held December 22, 1999 in the school’s
computer center and editorial office. There were
originally ten possible names for the magazine,
said Christopher Stovall, advertising and marketing
director for the publication. A school-wide
marketing survey was conducted to arrive at the
winning title.
B u z z is a project of St u a rt Hobson’s WIN
Afterschool Program in collaboration with the
Wa s h i n g ton Interf a i th Net wo rk and the DC
Public Schools. The 5th to 8th graders will be
taught and mentored by professionals in the
field of journalism and communication under
the guidance of Mari lyn Kaufman, a St u a rt
Hobson parent who has her own design and marketing
business; Arline Williams, Pro d u c t i o n
D i re c tor at Black Entertainment Te l ev i s i o n
Publications; Stuart Hobson computer teacher,
Wattie Harmon; and Bruce Robey, webmaster
and co-publisher of the Voice of the Hill.
Students will be using the latest comp u t e r
technology to produce the 32-page publication.
They will not only learn to write and layout a
magazine, they will also have hands on involvement
in all aspects of business, operations and
marketing. A website is also being planned.
Gerrie Okwesa, director of the after school program,
glowed as she introduced the editorial and
production staff. “This is one of our proudest
moments. The children have been magnificent. I
could not be more proud.”
The 1999-2000 staff follows: Dominique Lee,
Editor-in-Chief, Christopher Stovall, Advertising
and Marketing Director, Diedre Bier, Managing
Editor, Anna Riehle, Copy Editor, James Biddle,
Staff Wri t e r, Anwar Nu r, Photo Editor and
Commentator, Justin Evans., Commentator and
Graphic Designer, Russell Ricks, Photographer,
Brittany Brown, Graphic Designer, Rhea Mason,
Staff Writer, Ryan Mason, Illustrator and Staff
Writer, Christina Obb, Science Editor, Michael
C a d y, Business Edito r, Xavier Bonham, Sta f f
Writer, Emmanual Waktola, Circulation Director
and Staff Writer, Michael Kaufman, Technical
S u p p o rt, Burton Wheeler, Staff Writer and
Designer, Justin Wheeler, Staff Writer and Larry
Malkos, Graphic Designer.
Maury Meets the Prez
Nurse Hackman Hits the Limelight
M a u ry Elementa ry’s School Nu rse, Glori a
H a ckman, had the honor of intro d u c i n g
President Clinton at a press conference held in
the school gym on Tu e s d ay, December 21.
C l i n ton was th e re to announce to announce
plans to tighten emissions standards for cars and
sport-utility vehicles, and require oil companies
to produce cleaner gasoline.
Washington Pos t writer Philip P. Pan reported
that Hackman was called “out of nowhere” on
Friday, December, 17, and asked to introduce
C l i n ton. Pan says, “Hackman arri ved at
school...with a sore throat and butterflies in her
stomach. Moments before Clinton arrived, she
gargled water to soothe her throat. There was lit -
tle she could do to soothe her nerves. ‘It’s not
every day that you meet the president,’ she said.”
Hackman was asked to make the intro because
of the high number of asthma sufferers at the
school. About 25 of the 315 students at Maury
h ave been diagnosed with the ailment.
Nationally the condition affects more than 5
million children. She says “I think the pollution
in the air has a lot to do with it. You’ve just got
more and more cars on the road.”
Pan reported that “When Hackman finished
speaking, Clinton stepped up, gave her a big hug
and whispered, “Good job, Mrs. Hackman.” He
then turned to the audience and said: “I want to
thank Gloria Hackman for the fine statement she
made and for her 20 years of dedication as a
nurse. As the son and grandson of nurses, I liked
hearing her speak.”
The Voice aims to print all the news about
our neighborhood kids and neighborhood
schools. But if you don’t tell us, chances are
we won’t find out. Please send information
(we’re particularly interested in getting more
kids’ writing!) to Voice editor Stephanie
Cavanaugh. E-mail is preferred: Stephanie@
voiceofthehill.com), mailing address is 242
Kentucky Avenue, SE. She can also be reached
by phone at 544-2557.
Stanton Park is thronged with children, parents
and supporters, and is a solid wall of color—the
color of that year’s t-shirts for the Capitol Hill
Classic 10K & 3K races. The Classic, organized by
the Cluster School PTA, is the longest running
fund-raising race in the city.
By many measures, the Cluster School has
been and continues to be a successful school. Its
parents, teachers and principals remain committed
to doing the hard work that remains to be
done to fully realize the founders’ dream.
Laura Scott is the Chair of the Local School
Restructuring Team (LSRT) at the Capitol Hill
Cluster School. She is the parent of a 4th grader at
Watkins.
• School News • School News • School News • School News • School News •
36 www.voiceofthehill.com
BY SUS AN CHAPIN
Do you lie awake in the wee hours of the
night and worry about where you are
going to send your child to school? I
have been obsessing about this since
before my son was born three years ago. If you
live on Capitol Hill, there are plenty of choices.
Here’s a rundown:
Public Schools
For those of you paying a small fortune each year
for day care and/or a nanny, you will be pleased
to know that D.C. has fine—and free—public
pre-Kindergarten programs. This means that you
can start your 3-year-old in school next fall if
your child’s birthday is before the December 31st
cut-off date.
If you are considering a public school education,
the first thing you need to do is find out
which school district you live in. The boundary
lines can be unpredictable, so don’t assume that
you are in-boundary for the school next door.
Call the school to check. If you choose to place
your child in the school in your district, you will
still need to register. In-boundary registration
will begin in March.
If you prefer a school in another district, then
you will need to apply to that school as an “out
of boundary” candidate. Take note—the procedure
to do this has changed significantly from
previous years. The following paragraph comes
from the District of Columbia Public Schools
(DCPS) web page:
“The request forms for discretionary transfer
will be available at all schools after January 17
and will be accepted from January 28 until
February 29. Applications will be accepted at
field sites for each Ward in which the requested
school is located. Each site will take applications
from 8 AM to 4:30 PM. The field site for Ward 6 is
Anacostia Senior High School, 1601 16th St., SE.
For more information, call 442-5200.”
For a full run-down on DC public schools,
head for the enrollment fair which will be held at
the Convention Center on February 3rd from
6PM to 9PM. Each school will have a booth feat
u ring info rmation on pro grams, philosophy
and extra-curricular activities.
The Capitol Hill Cluster Schools
With the exception of children enrolled in the
Montessori prog ram, Cluster kids progress from
K i n d e r ga rten at Peabody to 1st th rough 4th
grades at Watkins Elementary, a Math/ Science/
Te chnology Initiative School. Then st u d e n t s
attend Stuart-Hobson Middle School, a Museum
Magnet School for 5th through 8th grades.
Pre-K and Kindergarten students may attend
one of three programs in the Cluster:
T h e re is a small Montessori pro gram at
Watkins for 3 to 9 year-olds. Due to its success,
an upper elementary class may soon expand the
program through the 6th grade. If you are interested
in the Montessori philosophy of education,
plan to start you child there at age 3.
Peabody houses the other two programs: A traditional
literary-based curriculum is taught on
the first and second floors, and an arts-based curriculum
is used by the Reggio Emilia Schoolwithin-
a-School Charter on the third floor.
Despite the differences in philosophy, these
programs are remarkably similar. For example,
b oth emphasize the use of deve l o p m e n ta l ly
appropriate tools, and all of the teachers in the
building are required to be trained in early childhood
education. To everyone’s benefit, both
programs also have one teacher teach the same
class of ch i l d ren for pre - K i n d e r ga rten and
Kindergarten.
The Reggio Emilia program is especially popular
with parents, and it may be difficult to get one
of the 40 pre-K spots available next year. The
average class size at Peabody is close to 20.
Schools and Contacts:
Peabody Early Childhood Center, 425 C Street, N.E,
698-3277
Watkins Elementary, 420 12th St. S.E, 698-3355
Contact for both: Jennifer Smith, P rincipal
Stuart Hobson Middle School, 410 E Street, N.E.,
698-4700. Contact: Rita Johnson, Principal
School-Within-a-School Charter at Peabody, 698-
3283. Contact: Sarah Burke, Lead Teacher
Yes, Virginia, There is Life
Outside the Cluster
While the Capitol Hill Cluster School gets much
attention, and (largely deserved) praise, there are
other public schools in the neighborhood that
boast innovative programs, and dedicated parents
and teachers. We profile a few:
If Maury Elementa ry happens to be yo u r
neighborhood school, take a tour before pressing
for Peabody. Maury has partnered with Carnegie
I n stitute to provide imp roved inst ru c t i o n a l
strategies for science, math and technology and
has recently been able to add Spanish to its curriculum.
Those budding technological skills are demonstrated
each morning with a short televised show
produced by the students, and broadcast to their
316 classmates. The responsibility for producing
the show, which includes morning announcements,
rotates monthly from classroom to classroom.
The school also offers a warm feeling of community
and continuity. It is not unusual for a
I t ’s Elementary
Getting Kids Off to Strong Start
Brent School
www.voiceofthehill.com 37
student to be the child—and even the grandchild
—of an alumnae, and though many faculty
members are young, the more senior teachers
have taught many of the parents of current stu -
dents.
Maury’s average class size is 20, and students
wear uniforms at the request of the parents.
Maury Elementary, 1250 Constitution Avenue,NE.
(enter on 13th Street)
Pre-K through 6th grades
Contact: Dale Talbert, Principal, 698-3838
Robert Brent Elementary has long enjoyed an
excellent reputation on the Hill. The Museum
M a g n et School, provides a ri ch educational
experience that connects teaching and learning
to the va st re s o u rces of the Smith s o n i a n
Institution.
Principal Connie Cowley says that the school
is also partnered with the Corcoran Art Gallery,
the National Park Service, the I Have a Dream
Foundation, the Lab School of Washington, the
DC 4H of America, the Carnegie Institute, and
Ernst & Young. The last partner has provided
money so that the 6th graders can further their
c o mputer skills and enhance their Intern et
knowledge. As part of that partnership, every
6th grade student will receive a computer and
software.
In addition, the school has two other innovative
programs: the “Voyager Prog ram,” helps to
link science and math to other core subjects, and
“Everybody Wins” has Senators coming to read
to the students during lunch.
Brent has 325 students and the average class
size is 23. The school is planning an open house
in the spring; call for information.
Robert Brent Elementary School Museum Magnet.
330 D Street,SE.
Pre-K through 6th
Contact: Connie Cowley, principal, 698.3363
Charter Schools
The District of Columbia Public Charter School
Board and the District of Columbia Board of
Education were authorized by the U.S. Congress
in 1995 to establish public charter schools in
Washington, DC. These programs, like public
s chools, are free, and we have two (besides
Peabody’s) nearby:
The World Public Charter School/Marco Polo
P r o g r a m at 595 1/2 3rd St re et, NW prov i d e s
I ta l i a n / E n glish and Chinese/English bilingual
programs. The school expects that the curriculum
will expand to include immersion in Arabic,
Japanese or Russian, and will lead to th e
I n t e rnational Baccalaureate designation. To
l e a rn more about the Wo rld Public Chart e r
School, contact Dorothy Goodman, Founder, at
783-3595.
The Edison-Friendship Public Charter School,
developed by Friendship House, has 3 campuses
and a total student body of 1500, which will
eventually expand to serve more than 2900 students
through the 12th grade. It has longer days
and is organized around small academies where
teachers stay with the same children for several
years. Technology plays an important role at the
school; students in the third grade and higher
receive a home computer after completing computer
training. Call 544-6672 for more information.
Private Schools
While I am very enthusiastic about the public
schools on the Hill, that didn’t prevent me from
falling in love with Capitol Hill Day School. It
happened the moment I looked at the view from
one of their classrooms in the old Dent School
building. With my feet rooted in one spot, I
could see through the windows the Library of
Congress dome, the Capitol dome, and the top
of the Washington monument.
The school, founded in1969, has 244 students
and an average class size of 24. CHDS emphasizes
its strong academic program, creative environment,
and the diversity of its students. There
are plenty of field trips, including an 8th grade
t rip to France (kids at the Day School begin
French in Kindergarten).
I must confess that my admiration for the
school is tempered only by the small print on the
back of their admissions brochure, which asks
parents to think of the school as a major recipient
of their charitable contributions. While I
appreciate the frankness, these donations are on
top of more than $11,000 in tuition. On the
other hand, donations go to support tuition for
those who can’t afford the full freight, which
allows the school to remain diverse.
That aside, you should call the admissions
office to make a reservation for a tour; the school
is very impressive.
Children entering pre-Kindergarten should be
4 years old by October 1 of their entering year.
The deadline for comp l eted applications is
February 9th.
Capitol Hill Day School,210 South Carolina
Avenue,SE.
Pre-K through 8th
Contact: Mary Beth Moore, Director of Admissions,
547-2244 extension 120.
Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian is a part of the Center
City Consortium, a group of eight Catholic elementary
schools in the District. The staff of the
C o n s o rtium centralizes some administ ra t i ve
functions such as finances and personnel for all
eight schools.
The school, founded in 1892, incorp o ra t e s
Catholic religious instruction with other academic
studies. The religious environment permeates
school activities through daily prayer,
classroom instruction and on-going spiritual formation.
There are about 227 students enrolled
this year, with an average
class size of 25. This year’s
tuition is only $2,600 ,
making it the most affordable
private school on the
Hill.
Applications for the fall
of 2000 will be accepted in
A p ril. Kinderga rten st udents
must be 5 years old
by December 31 st of th e
year in which they enter.
C o n tact the principal fo r
admissions info rm a t i o n
and to schedule a tour.
Holy Comforter - St. Cyprian Roman Catholic
School,1503 East Capitol Street,SE.
Pre-K through 8th grade
D e b o rah Jack s o n - Nesmith, principal, (202) 547 -
7556
St. Peter’s, founded in 1893, is the parish school
for four Catholic churches in the area: St. Peter’s,
St. Joseph’s, St. Dominic’s and St. Vincent
DePaul’s.
The school’s philosophy is to provide spiritual
and educational development to their racially,
socially, and economically diverse student population.
Admissions preference is given first to siblings
of present students, then to parishioners of the
four sponsoring churches, then to out-of-parish
Catholics, and finally to non-Catholics. Regist
ration begins in early Fe b ru a ry for the first
group, and continues through the month for the
other groups.
The school has 224 students, with 20 students
in the pre-Kindergarten class and about 25 students
per class in each of the other gra d e s .
Tuition is also a relative bargain at $3,470 for
parishioners and $4,120 for all other families.
The next open house at St. Peter’s is scheduled as
part of Catholic Schools Week, and will be on
Thursday, February 3rd.
St. Peter’s Interparish School,422 3rd Street,SE.
Pre-K through 8th grade
Contact: Pamela Klobukowski, principal, 544-1618
Get Going!
This should be enough information to get you
started on your search for your child’s elementary
school. Remember that while you are evaluating
schools and narrowing down your choices
you can also be gathering the paperwork for registration
and/or admissions.
Don’t forget that you may also need to register
your child for extended day programs to cover
the gap in care from the end of the school day to
the end of your workday. Be sure to ask about
these pro grams and evaluate them and th e i r
costs at the same time you are looking at the
schools.
See you on the first day of school. I’ll be the
p a rent of the beautiful, extre m e ly intelligent
child sitting in the front row. Or will that be
you?
Susan Chapin, an interior designer, lives in the
Capitol Hill Cluster School district with her hus -
band and son.
St. Peter’s School
38 www.voiceofthehill.com
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K i d s ’ C a l e n d a r Activities of Pa rticular Interest to Kids and Their Pa r e n t s
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Capitol Hill and Chesapeake Beach are our neighborhoods, we hope you’ll make them yours.
202-547-5600 (W) • 202-543-4296 (H) • 301-855-6443 (H)
email: jackiev@realtor.com / Licensed in DC, MD and VA
REMAX Capital Properties
Exhibits:
Capital Children’s Museum- 800 3rd St.,NE
Forever Young: A Portrait of the Black Child” Through the
power of photographs and words, Washington photographer
Nestor Hernandez and poet Laini Mataka have assembled a
powerful celebration of the beauty, innocence and joy of the
black child. Many children are unaware of the camera’s presence.
The collection of over 80 black and white photographs
show children in everyday life from the United States,Ghana,
and Cuba combined with compelling verses by Mataka.
Through March 25
Hand-Made Toys from Ghana’s Kiddafest Twenty winning
entries of hand made toys from Kiddafest 1999 will be on display
through March 26,2000. The Kiddafest 1999 Festival in
Ghana,which attracted over 50,000 children,featured a toy
making contest for children ages 7 to 13. Kiddafest,created
by the Accra International Children Arts Festival and presented
by the National Theater Ghana and the Ghana Education
Service,has become the largest international arts festival for
African children. Launched in Accra,Ghana in 1994,the festival
helps kids discover their own culture through their own creations,
as well as appreciating other world cultures.
Out-Of-Bounds Public School Registration Note! Parents
who wish to enroll their children in out-of-bounds schools take
note: The DC Public School web-page has announced a change
in procedure: “request forms for discretionary transfer will be
available at all schools after January 17 and will be accepted
from January 28 until February 29. Applications will be accepted
at field sites for each Ward in which the requested school
is located. Each site will take applications from 8 AM to 4:30
PM. The field site for Ward 6 is Anacostia Senior High School,
1601 16th St.,SE. For more information,call 442-5200.”
Thursday, January 20
Yoga Kids! Sessions for kids ages 4-13 begin today at
DancingHeart Center for Yoga. Thursday afternoon sessions
run 11-weeks—through March 30. The cost for the full course
is $99,or $9 per class. Classes for ages 4-7 are from 3:30-
4:30. Ages 8-13 are from 4:45 to 5:45. Child pick-up at selected
sites will be available for the 3:30 class. Yoga for kids is
taught by Gretchen Maisch-Kessler, who also teaches kindergarten
at the Capitol Hill Day School. Call Gretchen at 546-
9061 for more details.
Friday, January 28-29
Fast to Feed the Hungr y. The St. Marks Episcopal Church
Youth Group is holding a 30-Hour fast to raise money for the
organization World Vision. Kids get sponsors for their participation
and fast from 8AM Friday through Noon Saturday. The date
of this project may change,please call Call Ginger Gaines-
Cirelli,Director of Youth Ministries,for more information,543-
0053,ext. 17.
Saturday January 22
What’s a bird to do for food during the winter? Learn how to
make a birdfeeder that will have your feathered friends singing
your praises. Noon to 3PM. Capital Children’s Museum. 800
3rd St.,NE. General admission is $6,$4 for senior citizens,
and free to museum members and children 2 and under. The
museum is open daily from 10 AM– 5 PM Call (202) 675-4120
for general information.
January 29,2000
National Children’s Film Festival Information Session. The
National Children’s Film Festival (NCFF) is a national program
that encourages young people ages 9-18 to write,direct and
produce their own videos and films. The Capital Children’s
Museum will host a NCFF information session where youths
and their families will have the opportunity to learn how they
can participate in the 2000 Film Festival. Call 675-4175 to
register or for more information.
Sunday, January 30
Scienterrific Sundays:The Perfect Timekeepers. Pendulums,
pendulums,pendulums! Learn about the conservation of energy
and other properties of pendulums. 11AM and 2PM for
ages 4-7. Noon and 3PM for ages 8 and up. Capital Children’s
Museum. 800 3rd St.,NE.
Thursday, February 3
Public School Enrollment Fair. Explore all of the options for a
public school education in DC. Washington Convention Center.
6PM to 9PM.
Open House at St. Peter’s Interparish School. St. Peter’s,
founded in 1893,is the parish school for four Catholic churches
in the area: St. Peter’s,St. Joseph’s,St. Dominic’s and St.
Vincent DePaul’s.,but admission is also open to out-of-parish
Catholics,and non-Catholics. St. Peter’s,422 3rd Street,SE.
Contact: Pamela Klobukowski,principal,544-1618
Saturday February 5
The Art of Cards & Letters. A Valentine’s Day Festival at the
National Postal Museum. Explore the museum in search of all
things red! After the scavenger hunt,visitors of all ages are
invited to create their own valentines,draw a stamp celebrating
Valentine’s Day and write a letter to their special valentine.
All materials are provided. 11AM to 2PM. FREE.
Make Fon Story Pictures. Use construction paper to make
your own story pictures. Noon and 3PM. At 2PM let the rhythm
carry you away! A program of West African dancers and drummers.
Capital Children’s Museum. 800 3rd St.,NE. See
January 22 for admission info.
On Sunday, February 6
Honoring Librarian Robbi Scharfe. Open house at the
Southeast Branch Library from 2-6 PM in honor of Robbi,the
Children’s Librarian at the branch since 1978. Refreshments,
tributes,and hugs. Everyone’s invited.
Make Fon Story Pictures. At the Capital Children’s Museum.
Noon and 3PM. 800 Third St.,NE.
See January 22 for admission info.
Saturday, February 12
Shakespeare in Love. Just in time for Valentine’s Day! Explore
Shakespeare’s writings on love - and experience the wild situations
his characters encounter on the way to their hearts’
desire. Plays to be explored through drama,improvisational
work on the stage,and fun include Romeo and Juliet,Much
Ado About Nothing, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 10 AM,
$10. Appropriate for ages 9-14. Folger Shakespeare Library.
201 East Capitol St.
“Dear Master” Letters of a Slave Family. Professor Randall
Miller from Saint Joseph’s University will discuss the collection
of letters written by slaves and ex-slaves from his book “Dear
Master” Letters of a Slave Family. The letters reveal how one
slave family used words to maintain family ties and to assert
their own identities while in bondage on an Alabama cotton
plantation and later, while staking out “freedom” on the “frontier”
of Liberia. The more than 200 letters of the Skipwith family
that span from the 1830s through the 1860s are the
largest known collection of slave-written letters. These letters
relate an immediacy and intimacy few other records of slave
life can achieve. A dramatic reading of some of the letters by
actors from Cast of Thousands will accompany the discussion.
1-2PM. FREE. National Postal Museum.
Create a Quilt Patch. Quilting is a timeless craft that has
been practiced by African Americans for generations Stitch up
your own creation at the Capital Children’s Museum. Noon
to 3PM. 800 3rd St.,NE. See January 22 for admission info.
Sunday February 13
Sugarfootn’ with Sugar Foots. The Sugar Foots Company presents
an interactive program for children that challenges and
enriches their knowledge of the influence of African American
history. 2PM. Also,Don’t Give your Heart Away! It’s the force
behind Valentine’s Day! Learn about your own heart during this
Scienterrific Sunday special. Kids 4-7,11AM and 2PM. Kids 8
and up,Noon and 3PM. Capital Children’s Museum. 800 3rd
St.,NE. See January 22 for admission info.
Saturday, February 19
Design a stamp album of famous African Americans, write a
letter to famous African Americans,draw a commemorative
stamp for Black History month and explore the African stamps
in the “Stamps and Stories” galler y. Visitors will also create a
large stamp mural of Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784),one of
America’s first black poets. It’s a “Hands-on Learning!” activity
in celebration of Black History Month at The Discovery Center,
National Postal Museum. 1-3PM. FREE.
Saturday February 19- Monday February 21
Teen and Family Ski Trip. 3-day trip includes skiing at
Timberline and Canaan in West Virginia. Lodging at Camp
Horseshoe. The cost is approximately $125 including equipment.
Trip is sponsored by the St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
Youth Group but open to all,believers and skeptics alike,as
are all other youth activities. Kids 7th grade and up may go on
this trip without parents. Call Ginger Gaines-Cirelli,Director of
Youth Ministries,for more information,543-0053,ext. 17.
www.voiceofthehill.com 39
Save the Cow Now!
Ben & Jerry’s Fights Possibility of Corporate
Takeover
The fo l l owing message from Lori Johnsto n ,
owner of the Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream shop on 7th
Street, SE, arrived in the January 17 morning web
mail:
“Please join Ben & Jerry’s franchisees and the
Coalition to save Ben & Jerry’s, an ad hoc citizens
group, in opposing the sale of the company to
corporate interests. Recent indications that the
company may be sold has led local scoop shops
and concerned citizens to wage a nationwide
campaign urging customers to send postcards to
the Board of Directors of Ben & Jerry’s saying
that they want the company to remain independent.
The Washington area scoop shops will
offer a free cone (offer good until January 31,
2000) to all those who bring in a signed postcard
with a short statement of support for keeping the
c o mp a ny independent. Leave your sta mps at
home because the scoop shop will take care of
mailing your cards!
If you are unable to bring postcards in to the
scoop shops you may write the Board of
Directors:
Board of Directors, Ben & Jerry’s, 191 Bank
Street, Burlington, VT 05401
Tuesday January 25 will be a national day of
support for keeping Ben & Jerry’s independent.
Rallies will be held at scoop shops across the
country in cities such as New York, Baltimore,
Seattle and Washington DC. Please stop by and
show your support!”
For more information, Lori suggests you check
in at www. s aveth e c ow n ow.com or www.
savebenjerry.com, two websites set up to fight
the takeover.
What they’re saying at Save the Cow Now:
“Ben & Jerry’s, a longtime ally of environmental
protection efforts and other progressive causes,
is under attack. Several giant multinational
c o rp o rations are eyeing the independent,
Vermont-based ice cream maker for a potential
hostile takeover.
Roncadin of Italy, Anglo-Dutch giant Unilever,
Nestle SA of Switzerland and British firm Diageo
PLC are the corporations considering or making
bids to buy Ben & Jer ry’s.
Known around the world as much for its commitment
to social causes as for its ice cream, Ben
& Jerry’s gives 7.5 percent of its pre-tax profit to
ch a rities, including env i ro n m e n tal orga n i z ations.
In addition, the company uses only milk
and cream that is free of bovine growth hormones,
pays above - m a rket prices to Ve rm o n t
dairy farmers and supports environmental protection
efforts across the U.S. Opponents of the
takeover are concerned that a large corporation
will not continue to put those principles ahead
of profits. “This company has really come to
symbolize Ve rmont to the country and th e
world, it would be a shame if it were sucked into
the corporate homogenization that’s taking over
the planet ,” said Ve rmont Gove rnor Howa rd
Dean.
“I scream, you scream, we all for scream for ice
cream,” say opponents of the takeover.”
d o w nLoad continued
My Valentine goes to __________________________________________________________________________
My Valentine message (30 words maximum)______________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
And it’s from__________________________________________________________________________________
Send to: Voice of the Hill,120 11th Street,SE, Washington, DC 20003 or fax to 202-547-5133
…or in The Voice of the Hill (it’s free!)
Fill in the coupon and your Valentine message
will appear in the February print issue.
Or, send kisses with your keyboard! Post your
Valentine to www. voiceofthehill.com. Use the
online form and your message will appear on
the web immediately and in print in February.
40 www.voiceofthehill.com
S TA R RY
DAYS
Your Astrological Guide to
the Pursuit of Happiness
by Jeffrey Howard ©
Got something you want to
do? This calendar makes it
easy! You’ll find swell nights
for romance,when to shop or
have a party, and who to
invite. Want to get a hair -
cut? This calendar tells you
when,and it works for everyone!
The pull of the Planets
impact every one of us
regardless of our birthda y,
and using this calendar can
help us all in our pursuit of
happiness.
Friday 1.21.00
Dance. Dance. Dance. Then
kiss your honey at 11:58
PM. Let me know what hap -
pens.
Saturday 1.22.00
Work on your kickboxing .
Sunday 1.23.00
Check your pulse,and your
blood-pressure.
Monday 1.24.00
What’s the difference
between work and service?
Tuesday 1.25.00
What’s the nicest thing anyone
ever did for you? Can
you do that for someone
else?
Wednesday 1.26.00
Listen to John Lennon’s
music.
Thursday 1.27.00
Disseminate knowledge with
a kiss.
Friday 1.28.00
Fix it if it’s broke. The Moon’s
in Scorpio,and Scorpio
excels at fixing.
Saturday 1.29.00
A kind look turns away wrath.
Sometimes.
Sunday 1.30.00
Get lost in your imagination.
Monday 1.31.00
Improvise yourself.
Tuesday 2.1.00
Work on your taxes this
evening.
Wednesday 2.2.00
What are you doing to
achieve your ambitions? Do
you have a plan? Work your
plan.
Thursday 2.3.00
Take time for lunch even if
you’re not hungry.
Friday 2.4.00
Celebrate diversity. We are
all as unique as snowflakes.
Saturday 2.5.00
The Chinese Year of the
Dragon begins. Today’s Solar
Eclipse (8:03 AM - visible in
Antarctica) connects with the
Eclipse of 8.11.99. Watch
your own self. We create our
own reality, our own Thrill
House.
Sunday 2.6.00
Be in bed by 11 PM,and
enjoy sweet Piscean dreams.
Monday 2.7.00
Be sensitive to others,not
sacrificial.
Tuesday 2.8.00
Listen to martial music while
you dine this evening.
Wednesday 2.9.00
Wear your most fanciful hat.
Thursday 2.10.00
Work flows well after 9:30
AM. Use this time to finish
your projects.
Friday 2.11.00
Another good day for working.
Pay attention to your
intuition while you’re at it.
Saturday 2.12.00
Lots of energy today. Eat like
a teeny-tiny bird to keep your
energy mellow.
Sunday 2.13.00
Gossip could turn mean
today. Find something to do
with your hands,not your
mouth.
Monday 2.14.00
Lovely night for love.
Tuesday 2.15.00
Eat with your non-dominant
hand. Maybe you won’t
overeat. Maybe.
Wednesday 2.16.00
Food cannot substitute for
emotions. Feel your emotions.
Feel,and heal.
Thursday 2.17.00
Be a star at work toda y, not
a showoff,but someone who
gets things done. And put on
a happy face. Smile like a
Hollywood star!
Jeffrey is a professional
astrologer who lives on
Capitol Hill with his wife yoga
teacher Kamakshi Hart,and
two highly evolved beings
who have incarnated as cats.
EXHIBITS
Exhibitions at the
National Postal
Museum, 2
Massachusetts Ave., NE
“Posted Aboard R.M.S.
Titanic”
Check your watch and note
the time. Titanic sank in
about 160 minutes,probably
less time than you will spend
touring “Posted Aboard
R.M.S. Titanic.” The exhibit
tells the story of the sea post
clerks who perished in 1912.
The exhibit also explores the
condition of the mail which
remains inside the hull nine
decades after the sinking.
Video film footage of the mail -
room,shown in this exhibit,
reveals that the mailbags
still survive. Selected
Exhibition Artifacts: John Star r
March’s pocket watch,found
on his body when it was
recovered at sea. The gold
time-piece stopped ticking at
1:27 AM on the morning of
April 15,1912; Four postal
facing slips found in Oscar
Scott Woody’s suit coat the
night he died; Oscar Scott
Woody’s personal effects bag,
mail chain, key, and
Ingersoll/Midgett pocket
watch,corroded from immersion
in sea water; Sea post
clerk Woody’s travel order,
issued on April 1,1912,
instructing him to proceed to
Southampton for service
aboard R.M.S. Titanic; and a
life jacket used in
the motion picture Titanic.
Through June 12,2000.
“Mayhem by Mail”
The vital duties of the United
States Postal Inspection
Service are the focus of
“Mayhem by Mail.” The exhibit
uses historic documents
and objects - including
confiscated booty, counterfeit
lithographs,crime scene photographs
and reconstructed
mail bombs - to highlight the
service’s essential role in protecting
the American public
and their mail. Through April
23,2000.
Exhibitions at the
Library of Congress
“John Bull and Uncle Sam:
Four Centuries of British-
American Relations”
The second in a series of
exhibitions celebrating the
Library’s bicentennial theme
“Libraries,Creativity, Liberty”
is now on view. “John Bull
and Uncle Sam,” a joint project
of the Library of Congress
and the British Librar y, brings
together for the first time
treasures from the two
largest libraries in the
English-speaking world. The
exhibition explores the inter -
woven history of the two
nations from the earliest
British settlement in
Virginia to the present and
demonstrates the extraordinary
cultural exchange that
has been a constant feature
of the relationship between
Great Britain and the United
States. Contact: (202) 707-
4604. (Northwest Gallery and
Pavilion of the Thomas
Jefferson Building through
March 4)
“Life of the People: Realist
Prints and Drawings from
the Ben and Beatrice
Goldstein Collection,1912-
1948”
This exhibition celebrates the
Library’s recent acquisition of
a collection of some 2,800
prints and drawings,that are
particularly rich in images
from the 1930s,when the
Depression led increasing
numbers of artists to turn
toward socially relevant subject
matter. Hours for the
exhibition are 10 AM to 5:30
PM,Monday-Saturday.
Through January 29,
2000.
“By Securing to Authors:
Copyright,Commerce,and
Creativity in America”
This exhibition features a
wide range of items that have
been copyrighted in America,
including original Ken and
Barbie dolls,Martin Luther
King, Jr.’s I Have a Dream
speech and the statue of the
“Maltese Falcon” that was
used in the film of the same
name. Exhibition hours are
8:30 AM to 5 PM,Monday-
Friday. Fourth Floor,
Green/Blue Corridors,
Madison Building. Open indefinitely
“Here to Stay: The Legacy
of George and Ira
Gershwin”
The George and Ira Gershwin
Room is a permanent exhibition
area for materials from
the Library’s George and Ira
Gershwin Collection,the
world’s preeminent resource
for the documentary legacy of
the Gershwin brothers. “Here
to Stay: The Legacy of George
and Ira Gershwin” includes
George’s piano and desk,Ira’s
typing table and typewriter, a
self-portrait oil painting of
each brother, handwritten
musical manuscripts and
other documents that chronicle
their lives and careers. An
audio-video kiosk allows visitors
to view film footage and
learn more about the
Gershwins and their music.
(George and Ira Gershwin
Room,Northwest Ground
Floor Corridor of the Jefferson
Building, open indefinitely)
“American Treasures of the
Library of Congress”
The unprecedented permanent
“American Treasures”
exhibition,made possible by
a grant from
the Xerox Foundation,showcases
240 items that repre -
sent the breadth and depth of
the Library’s American historical
items. Featured in the
“Top Treasures” case this
summer is Thomas
Jefferson’s “rough draft” of
the Declaration of
Independence. (Southwest
Gallery and Pavilion of the
Thomas Jefferson Building).
For additional information,call
(202) 707-3834.
“The Gerry Mulligan
Collection”
Gerry Mulligan’s gold-plated
Conn baritone saxophone is
the centerpiece of this perma -
nent exhibition. Other items
on display from the Library’s
Gerry Mulligan Collection are
photographs that document
Mulligan’s long career, music
manuscripts in Mulligan’s
hand,record covers,performance
programs and posters,
and a 1981 Grammy that he
won for the best jazz instr umental
performance in his
album Walk on the Water.
Hours for the exhibition are
8:30 AM to 5 PM Monday-
Friday. Foyer of the Performing
Arts Reading Room,LM 113
in the Madison Building , open
indefinitely.
Exhibitions at the
Folger Shakespeare
Library, 201 East
Capitol St.,SE
The Shakespeare Gallery
(permanent)
Opened on January 27,1999,
The Shakespeare Gallery is a
permanent multi-media exhibition
which gives visitors a
chance to browse electronically
through the Folger’s rich
treasures pertaining to
Shakespeare and his time.
The Shakespeare Gallery is
adjacent to the Folger
Great Hall.
“All is but Fortune”
Good Fortune. Bad Fortune:
which will it be? and for how
long? who will rise? who will
fall? In the classical world
the goddess Fortuna,often
pictured with her constantly
turning wheel,came to
embody the arbitrary in life.
The Fortuna of the
Renaissance,who could not
be completely subsumed into
Christianity, is featured in this
exhibition as she
appeared in emblems,on title
pages,in plays,poems,and
prose,as well as on medals
and in works of art. Today, as
we look toward a new centur y
and a new millennium,our
awareness of the revolutions
of time,pictured in Fortune’s
turning wheel,is especially
acute,and because fortunes
change,but Fortune doesn’t,
you will find this goddess
more familiar than you think.
Through June 10,2000.
Exhibitions at the
Washington Navy Yard—
8th and M Sts.,SE
“The Navy in the Forgotten
War: Korea 1950-53”
Exhibit commemorates the
50th anniversary of the conflict
in Korea,covering the
themes of naval aviation,gunfire
support,amphibious operations,
minesweeping, medical
support,and armistice
negotiations. A restored
Landing Craft Vehicle
Personnel (LCVP) will dominate
the
exhibition. Exhibit will remain
on display until 2001.
www.voiceofthehill.com 41
Park Cafe
on Capitol Hill
106 13th St., SE
at the east end of Lincoln Park
Continental & Latin Fare
Mon 6pm-10pm
Tues-Sat noon-3pm &
6pm-11:30pm
Sunday noon-8:30 pm
Large Wine list
New Menu Items
Daily Specials
Mention the ad and recieve a special surprise!
202-543-0184
“Building a Navy Yard in a
New Capital”
In celebration of the
Bicentennial of the
Washington Navy Yard (1799-
1999),the Navy Art Gallery is
featuring the exhibit,“Building
a Navy Yard in a New Capital.”
Focusing on the early histor y
of the Yard,the exhibit traces
the most significant events
during the early period,in particular
the War of 1812 and
the burning of the Yard. It
examines the origin,early
architecture,and role of the
Washington Navy Yard in the
development of the U.S. Navy.
Through May 2000.
Events
Friday January 21
Brandenburg Ensemble. Get
tickets now for the
Ensemble’s appearance at
the Library of Congress on
February 9! Visit a
TicketMaster outlet or call
(301) 808-6900 or (202)
432-SEAT to obtain tickets,
which are free except for a
nominal service fee charged
by TicketMaster. Contact:
707-5502.
• Juilliard String Quartet.
Tickets go on sale today for
the Quartet’s performances
on Feb. 24-25 at the Librar y
of Congress. See Brandenburg
listing for ticket info.
• Pen/Faulkner Reading:
Diane Johnson. Author of 12
books,including Persian
Nights and Le Divorce, a
1997 National Book Award
finalist,Johnson will publish
Le Mariage early in 2000.
“Like Jane Austen she steps
out of the frame to anatomize
her characters with sudden
insight; like Virginia Woolf she
creeps back in to record their
inappropriate thoughts—and
their consternation at having
them,” said Newsweek.
Johnson reads from her latest
work at the Folger
Library. Reading at 8 PM,followed
by a reception,book
signing, and book sale in the
Folger Great Hall. Tickets:
$13.
• Luminous Spirit: Eternal
Chants of Hildegard von
Bingen. Music at St. Mark’s
presents Rosa Lamoreaux,
soprano,and Hesperus (Tina
Chancey and Scott Reiss) performing
the music of
Hildegard von Bingen,12th
century abbess and mystic.
Hildegard’s poems were
inspired by her visions and
are filled with vivid images
and apocalyptic expression.
Set to music,these poems
form a liturgical cycle of
chants. Don’t miss the only
Washington performance this
year of this program,which
was recently performed to
standing room only crowds at
The Cloisters in New York
City. St. Mark’s Episcopal
Church,3rd & A Streets,SE.
Tickets:
Preferred $20,General
Admission $15,Seniors/students
$8. 8:00 PM For more
information or to place ticket
orders,call 202/543-1397,
ext.7.
Saturday, January 22
The Great Train Robbery
(1903) and Cat Ballou
(1965). Hollywood has had a
longtime romance with trains
and train robberies. Train robberies
were lucrative crimes
and the mail car was typically
the primary target. Join us to
view two great videos that
helped spark Hollywood’s
“western” genre through the
romanticization of train robberies.
The Great Train
Robbery is a 1903 classic
based on a true train robber y
from 1900. (silent,b/w, 12
minutes) Cat Ballou is a sly
blend of Western parody and
rapid fire action. Starring Lee
Marvin and Jane Fonda. (96
minutes,1965). Rail,Sail &
Overland Mail Program
Series: Hollywood & the
Railway Mail Service. 1-3PM.
National Postal Museum.
FREE.
• History of the Railway Mail
Service. Frank Scheer, curator
of the Railway Mail
Service Librar y, will provide a
brief overview of the four eras
of Railway Post Office histor y
and introduce a 1956 film
produced by the Post Office
Department entitled,“Men
and Mail in Transit.” The film
describes the operation of
Railway Post Offices and the
responsibilities of clerks who
were aboard these trains. It
includes scenes of a non-stop
mail exchange at
Kensington,MD, pictures
along the B&O Railroad
between Washington, D.C.
and Cumberland,MD,
as well as interior and track -
side views of the Washington,
D.C. Union Station. 11AMNOON.
National Postal
Museum. FREE.
• Spoon River Anthology. It’s
“Our Town” with teeth...The
local hookers out to get the
mayor. Someone torched the
county courthouse. Mrs.
Merritt’s teenage lover just
shot Tom Merritt dead. And
nobody listens to the librari -
an. A production of the
Theater Alliance of the
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop.
8PM. $15 ($10 seniors and
students) Christ Church
stage,620 G St.,SE. Info
and reservations: 547-6839.
Sunday, January 23
Spoon River Anthology. It’s
“Our Town” with teeth...The
local hookers out to get the
mayor. Someone torched the
county courthouse. Mrs.
Merritt’s teenage lover just
shot Tom Merritt dead. And
nobody listens to the librari -
an. A production of the
Theater Alliance of the Capitol
Hill Arts Workshop. 3PM and
6PM. $15 ($10 seniors and
students) Christ Church
stage,620 G St.,SE. Info
and reservations: 547-6839.
Monday, January, 24
• Jazz on Film. Three segments
of the BBC’s “Jazz
625” series — on Erroll
Garner, Bill Evans and
Thelonious Monk” — will be
featured in tonight’s jazz film
program at the Library of
Congress. The program will
be introduced by John Edward
Hasse,curator of American
music at the Smithsonian
Institution’s National Museum
of American History. Pickford
Theater, third floor of the
Madison Building, at 7PM.
Admission is on a first-come,
first-served basis; no reservations
will be taken. Contact:
(202) 707-1848.
• Poetry Reading: Thomas
Lux & Toi Derricotte. Thomas
Lux directs the poetry MFA
program at Sarah Lawrence
College and won the 1995
Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award.
His New and Selected Poems:
1975-1995 came out in
1997. Toi Derricotte teaches
at the University of Pittsburgh
and is the co-founder of Cave
Canem,a workshop retreat
for African-American poets.
She recently published her
fourth collection, Tender.
Tonight,Lux and Derricotte
read from their latest work at
the Folger Library. Reading at
8 PM,followed by a reception,
book signing, and book sale
in the Folger Great Hall. A
seminar and supper precede
the reading at 5:30 PM
Tickets: $10 ($40 to seminar,
supper, and reading).
Tuesday, January 25
Sherlock Holmes (Fox,1932),
and “House of Fear”
(Universal,1944). Films at
the Library of Congress.
Pickford Theater, third floor of
the Madison Building, 6:30
PM For reservation informa -
tion,see listing for Jan. 21.
Wednesday, January 26
Genevieve (Sirius,1954) Film
at the Library of Congress.
Pickford Theater, third floor of
the Madison Building, 7 PM
For reservation information,
see listing for Jan. 21.
• Motown! In its continuing
exploration and celebration of
the popular music of African
Americans,the Music Division
of the Library of Congress
presents Suzanne Smith,who
will discuss and sign her
newly published book,
Dancing in the Street: Motown
and the Cultural Politics of
Detroit. Montpelier Room,
sixth floor of the Madison
Building, at 7:30 PM,is free
and no tickets are required.
Contact: (202) 707-5502.
Thursday, January 27
A Man Called Adam (Trace-
Mark Productions/Embassy
Pictures Corp.,1966),a backstage
melodrama about nonviolence
and issues of race,
based loosely on the life of
Miles Davis. It stars Sammy
Davis Jr. as a trumpeter
(ghosted on the soundtrack
by Nat Adderley); others in
the cast include Louis
Armstrong, Ossie Davis,Mel
Torme and Cecily Tyson.
Featured musicians include Jo
Jones,Buster Bailey, Hank
Jones and “Pops” Foster. The
program will be introduced by
Julian Euell. For reservation
information,see listing for
Jan. 21.
Friday, January 28
Poetry at Noon. Poets Marie
Howe,author of The Good
Thief, and Tom Sleigh,author
of The Dreamhouse, read at
noon at the Library of
Congress. Pickford Theater,
third floor of the Madison
Building. Free. Contact: (202)
707-1308.
• The Servant (Springbok
Films,1963). At the Library of
Congress. Pickford Theater,
third floor of the Madison
Building, 7 PM For reservation
information,see listing for
Jan. 21.
Saturday, January 29
The Clustered World. In his
new book, The Clustered
World, Michael Weiss offers a
fascinating and insightful look
at the 62 new lifestyle “clus -
ters” that define Americans—
and “cluster” parallels in
other countries. Discover
how mail order and other
businesses use clustering
systems to influence our
choices in everything from
bowling alleys in Florida to
moose hunting in Canada.
Learn who buys Spam in
America and why Parisian
office workers no longer take
two hours for lunch. Book
signing follows lecture. 1-
2PM. National Postal
Museum. FREE.
• Spoon River Anthology. It’s
“Our Town” with teeth...The
local hookers out to get the
mayor. Someone torched the
county courthouse. Mrs.
Merritt’s teenage lover just
shot Tom Merritt dead. And
nobody listens to the librari -
an. A production of the
Theater Alliance of the
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop.
8PM. $15 ($10 seniors and
students) Christ Church
stage,620 G St.,SE. Info
and reservations: 547-6839.
Monday, January 31
The Champions: The
Beginning” (ITC,1968) and
Department S: The Man from
X (ITC,1969). Films at the
Library of Congress. Pickford
Theater, third floor of the
Madison Building, 7 PM For
reservation information,see
listing for Jan. 21.
Thursday, February
ANC 6A Meeting. 7PM. JO
Wilson Elementary School.
7th and K Streets,NE.
• Spoon River Anthology. It’s
“Our Town” with teeth...The
local hookers out to get the
mayor. Someone torched the
county courthouse. Mrs.
Merritt’s teenage lover just
shot Tom Merritt dead. And
nobody listens to the librari -
an. A production of the
Theater Alliance of the
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop.
8PM. $15 ($10 seniors and
students) Christ Church
stage,620 G St.,SE. Info
and reservations: 547-6839.
Friday, February 4
Spoon River Anthology. It’s
“Our Town” with teeth...The
local hookers out to get the
mayor. Someone torched the
county courthouse. Mrs.
Merritt’s teenage lover just
shot Tom Merritt dead. And
nobody listens to the librari -
an. A production of the
Theater Alliance of the
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop.
8PM. $15 ($10 seniors and
students) Christ Church
stage,620 G St.,SE. Info
and reservations: 547-6839.
Saturday, February 5
• Spoon River Anthology. It’s
“Our Town” with teeth...The
local hookers out to get the
mayor. Someone torched the
county courthouse. Mrs.
Merritt’s teenage lover just
shot Tom Merritt dead. And
nobody listens to the librari -
Sundays at 8:15 a.m.
Holy Eucharist Rite I followed
by breakfast and Adult Forum.
Nursery provided.
11:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist
Rite II followed by
Coffee Hour. Nursery provided
Wednesdays at 7:30 a.m.
Holy Eucharist Rite II
followed by breakfast.
Our doors are open to all
CH R I S T CH U R C H ?WA S H I N G T O N PA R I S H
Washington’s Oldest Episcopal Parish
620 G St., SE • Washington, DC 20003 • (202) 547-9300
on Capitol Hill near Eastern Market Metro Stop
Handicapped accessible from back parking lot, off Archibald Walk,
between E and G Streets
H a n d y m a n
on the Hill
Masonry Brick & Stone
Concrete Brick Pointing
Carpentry Decks & Fences
Roof Repairs Painting
2 0 2 - 2 06 - 718 5
42 www.voiceofthehill.com
classifieds • classifieds • c l a s s i f i e d s
Want to purchase
Quality used books,Single
volumes or entire library! Call
Steve at Riverby Books 202-
544-1925
Books Bought and Sold.
We want what you can give,
we pay what we can afford.
Capitol Hill Books. Capitol
Hill’s only used bookstore
across the street from
Eastern Market. 657 C
Street,SE 202/544-1621
Capitol Hill
1 bedroom,English basement
apt. Newly renovated,fireplace,
hardwood floors,bay
window. 1 block to Eastern
Market Metro. A must see.
&750 + unilities. Call (202)
544-7824 to view.
Jeep for Sale
1996 Jeep Cherokee Sport,
2dr, Std Trans,Pwr windows
and locks,55K miles,excellent
cond. $12,500. Darryl
Moran 240-725-0143.
Grocery Deliver y
Limited area and weight.
Safeway at Kentucky and C.
Great timesaver for non-shoppers.
Call 202-546-1657
Office for Rent
Furnished office use of con -
ference room,reception area.
Capitol Hill-Eastern Market.
Michael Hines,202-544-4300
Apartment for Rent
Basement Apt.,2 BR,1 bath,
W/D. Central air, fireplace,
upgraded kitchen,alarm system.
Brand new renovation.
Available 2/1/2000. Call
Michael 202-544-4300 or
301-442-7725
Help Wanted
Assistant Manager, 30 hours,
some weekends. Retail experience
necessary pet experience
preferred. Call Dennis at
Dooolittles. 544-8710.
Volunteers Needed
J.O. Wilson elementary school
at 6th and K Street,NE
needs volunteers,especially
arts and crafts,for the after
school program, Friday afternoons
4-5:30. Not necessar y
to come every Friday. Please
call Nettie Jones,J.O. Wilson
After School Program Director
at 202-724-4707.
Help Wanted
Full time receptionist for
Capitol Hill office. Fax resume
to 202-544-7876.
Nanny Needed
Fulltime nanny needed.
Couple looking for thoughtful,
nurturing individual to care for
infant in their Capitol Hill
home. Must be available to
start mid-February or early
March and work Mon-Fri 9
a.m. to 7 p.m. Salary and
benefits negotiable. Please
call Alison at 547-2376.
Nanny Needed
Experienced nanny needed.
25 hours a week to care for
infant twins in our Capitol Hill
home. Experience and references
required. Please call
(202) 544-1433
Classified Ad Placement Form
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h Apartments/Rooms h Auto h Books h Children’s Items h Electronics
h Furniture h Office h Other ______________________________________________
h Personals h Positions hServices hTools
h Website h Newspaper h Both
The web classified ads ar e a free community service of the Voice of the Hill.
N ewspaper ads are $20 for the first 20 w o rds and $.25 per w o rd th e re a ft e r.
Visa and MasterCard are accepted.
Please describe the item and please be concise, t here is a 200 website character limitation (there is no limit to
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Please enclose payment with order. Mail to Voice of the Hill, 120 11th Street, SE, Washington, DC 20003. Or fax
information (credit card payment only) to 202-547-5133.
Credit Card Number/Type____________________________________Exp. Date___________________________
Name on Card __________________________________________________________________________________
Signature _______________________________________________________________________________________
an. A production of the
Theater Alliance of the Capitol
Hill Arts Workshop. 8PM. $15
($10 seniors and students)
Christ Church stage,620 G
St.,SE. Info and reservations:
547-6839.
Tuesday, February, 8
• Landscaping Ellen Wilson.
Patricia McMillen of Oehme &
Van Sweden will discuss
“Before and After :
Landscaping Challenges at
the Ellen Wilson Community”
at the monthly meeting of the
Capitol Hill Garden Club.
7PM. Capitol Hill Baptist
Church. 6th & A Streets,NE.
For club info call Claire Davis
at 544-0560.
• ANC 6B Meeting. 7PM. 921
Pennsylvania Ave.,SE.
Wednesday, February 9
Brandenburg Ensemble at the
Library of Congress. Concer t
directed by Jaime Laredo,violin
and viola; with Leila
Josefowicz,violin; and Reiko
Uchida,piano. At 8:00 PM,
Library of Congress,see
Friday, January 21 for ticket
information
Friday, February 11
The Cameraman (1928)
Buster Keaton’s first majorstudio
feature. While trying to
get his first scoop and win
the girl,our hero bumbles his
way into the thick of a
Chinese tong war. Films on
the Hill is pleased to have
Ray Brubacher at the piano
for this great silent comedy
classic. 7:30PM. $5. Black
Box Theater at the Capitol Hill
Arts Workshop,545 7th
Street SE.
• Fortunes of Love,the Folger
Consort in Concert. Featuring
Robert Eisenstein viol,vielle,
Johana Arnold,soprano,
Christopher Kendall,lute,
citole,harp, Mark Bleeke
tenor, and David Douglass violin,
vielle. 8PM,pre-concert
discussion at 7PM. Folger
Shakespeare
Library, 201 East Capitol St.
544-7077.
Saturday, February 12
“Dear Master”Letters of a
Slave Family. Professor
Randall Miller from Saint
Joseph’s University will discuss
the collection of letters
written by slaves and exslaves
from his book “Dear
Master”Letters of a Slave
Family. The letters reveal how
one slave family used words
to maintain family ties and to
assert their own identities
while in bondage on an
Alabama cotton plantation
and later, while staking out
“freedom” on the “frontier” of
Liberia. The more than 200
letters of the Skipwith family
that span from the 1830s
through the 1860s are the
largest known collection of
slave-written letters. These
letters relate an immediacy
and intimacy few other
records of slave life can
achieve. A dramatic reading
of some of the letters by
actors from Cast of
Thousands will accompany
the discussion. 1-2PM.
National Postal Museum.
• Fortunes of Love,the Folger
Consort in Concert. Featuring
Robert Eisenstein viol,vielle,
Johana Arnold,soprano,
Christopher Kendall,lute,
citole,harp, Mark Bleeke
tenor, and David Douglass violin,
vielle. 8PM. Folger
Shakespeare Library, 201
East Capitol St. Folger
Shakespeare Library, 201
East Capitol St. 544-7077.
Sunday, February 13
Fortunes of Love,the Folger
Consort in Concert. Featuring
Robert Eisenstein viol,vielle,
Johana Arnold,soprano,
Christopher Kendall,lute,
citole,harp, Mark Bleeke
tenor, and David Douglass violin,
vielle. 2:00 PM & 5:30
PM Folger Shakespeare
Library, 201 East
Capitol St. 544-7077.
Friday, February 18
Shakespeare’s R&J. First preview
night for the regional pre -
mier of a show that won rave
reviews Off-Broadway. A
“retelling of ‘’Romeo and
Juliet,’’ in a marvelously
watchable way..” said Peter
Marks of the New York Times.
Adapted and directed by
Helen Hayes Award
winner, Joe Calarco. Folger
Shakespeare Library. Tickets:
$27-$36 (Previews: $22-$25).
Additional preview, Saturday
February 19. Opening night,
Sunday, February 20. Call
(202) 544-7077 for information
on theatre subscriptions
(new this season!).
208 Mass. Ave., NE
(202) 546-6969-6970
750ml wine—Buy 6 and get 20% off
Deli Platters $4.99 per person
1 2Ground Hog Day
Free lunchtime jazz concert at
the Corcoran. John Eaton.
12:30PM
3Public School Enrollment
Fair . Explore all of the
options for a public school
education in DC. Washington
Convention Center. 6PM to
9PM.
4Black History Month
Enjoy the various commerative
activities throughout the city.
At the Capital Children’s
Museum you can take in
Forever Young: A Portrait of
the Black Child,” powerful
photographs by Washington
photographer Nestor
Hernandez.
5Chinese New Year
Take in Spoon River
Anthology a production
of the Theater Alliance of
CHAW. 8PM. $15 ($10
seniors/students) Christ
Church stage, 620 G St.,
SE. Info and reservations:
547-6839.
6Chinese New Year Parade.
Marching bands, lion and
dragon dancers, and clowns!
2PM at 5th
and H
Street, NW
7 11 The Cameraman (1928),
Buster Keaton’s first majorstudio
feature. Silent comedy
classic is accompanied by
Ray Brubacher at the piano.
7:30PM. $5. Black Box
Theater at the Capitol Hill Arts
Workshop, 545 7th Street SE.
12 Lincoln’s Birthday
Washington DC
International Wine
Festival. Over 800 wines,
seminars and celebrity
chefs. More info check
www.wine-expos.com.
Event repeats tomorrow.
13 Fortunes of Love, the
Folger Consort in Concert.
Featuring Johana Arnold,
soprano. 2:00 PM &
5:30 PM Folger
Shakespeare Library,
201 East Capitol St. 544-
7077.
14 Valentines Day 15 Seminar at the Corcoran,
“Art & Restaurants: Tasting
and Reviewing,” an evening
with Phyllis Richman.
Reception follows, 7:30PM.
16 18 Sign Up Tomorrow!
St. Mark’s Youth Group’s
Teen & Family Ski Trip .
3-day trip includes skiing at
Timberline and Canaan in WV.
Cost app. $125 including
equipment. All welcome.
Ginger Gaines-Cirelli, Director
of Youth Ministries, 543-0053,
ext. 17.
19
Artistry of Orchids Exhibit
Opens. Smithsonian sponsored
exhibit features a splen
did assortment and display.
Arts and Industries Building.
Full Moon
20 Opening Night!
Shakespeare’s R&J. A
“retelling of Romeo and Juliet,
in a marvelously watchable
way.” said Peter Marks of
the New York Times. Adapted
and directed by Helen Hayes
Award winner, Joe Calarco.
Folger Shakespeare Library.
Tickets: $27-$36.
21 President’s Day 22 George Washington’ s
Birthday
23 Lunchtime Jazz at the
Corcoran. The Paul
Bollenback Quartet. 12:30PM
24 A Man Called Adam (1966),
starring Louis Armstrong,
Ossie Davis, Sammy Davis Jr.,
Mel Torme and Frank Sinatra,
Jr. Library of Congress.
Madison Bldg. 7 PM.
The Olney Theater and the
Corcoran present The
Imaginary Invalid, Moliere’s
classic farce. 7:30PM.
25 A good day to take in an
Exhibiiton at the Folger .
“All is But Fortune.” How
the goddess Fortuna, often
pictured on her ever turning
wheel, came to embody the
arbitrary in the classical
world. 201 East Capitol St.
26 This space
is reserved
for you!
Please call
Phyllis Jane
Young today
to put your
listing here.
27 At the Corcoran: The
Coolidge String Quartet,
featuring works by Haydn,
Schonberg and Brahms.
Reception follows. 5:30PM.
28 Poetry Readings at the
Folger. Arthur Sze, The
Reshifting Web: Poems
1970-1998, & Vijay Seshadri,
Wild Kingdom. Seminar &
supper at 5:30PM. Reading
8PM. $10 ($40 for seminar,
supper and reading) 201
East Capitol. 544-7077
29 LEAP YEAR!
]
PHYLLIS JANE YOUNG
PARDOE Real Estate ERA Office 202.262.7253 • Home 202.544.4236
email: phyllisjaneyoung@realtor.com
17 The Music of Ecuador at the
Corcoran. Reception follows.
7:30PM
10 Stop by Pardoe
and see
Phyllis Jane
Young for a 2-
for-1 dining car d
promoting some
of the Hill’s best
restaurants
8Capitol Hill Garden Club
Meeting. Patricia McMillen
of Oehme & Van Sweden
discusses “Before and After:
Landscaping Challenges at
the Ellen Wilson Community.”
7PM. Capitol Hill Baptist
Church. 6th & A Streets, NE.
9Brandenburg Ensemble at
the Library of Congress.
Concert directed by Jaime
Laredo, violin and viola; with
Leila Josefowicz, violin; and
Reiko Uchida, piano. 8:00 PM.
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