A Self-Reliant People
—Greater Deanwood Heritage Trail —
Front:
Sheltered from overt bigotry many African Americans experienced when venturing downtown, Deanwood shoppers of the 1950s patronized Sheriff Road's mostly African American businesses, including Mouse Gordon's tailor shop, Tip Top Grocery, Deanwood Pool Hall, Fat's Barber Shop, 4501 Soda Bar and Grill, a pharmacy, printer, and bakery.
Among the businessmen was Earl E. King, Sr., who started selling ice and coal from his home near Sheriff Road and 45th Place in 1925. King and his family also delivered ice for home iceboxes. In the late 1950s, he installed the only 14-home, self service ice machine in Northeast, still visible behind 4501 Sheriff Road. He also offered limousine service.
Al and Ida Mendelson were among the Jewish proprietors who ran businesses here. In the 1940s they lived above their Certified Food Market at 4400 Sheriff, where cash-strapped customers could simply sign "the book" and settle accounts later. Their son Maury developed "big burger" patties and sandwich steaks for sale to area restaurants. The Mendelsons sold the grocery in 1948 to focus on Murry's Steaks, offering wholesale frozen meat products. In its third generation, the business continues as Murry's family of Fine Foods, retailing in Washington and the Mid-Atlantic.
Another multi-generation business
began when Henry Parker opened Suburban Market and a filling station at 49th Place and Grant Street in 1944. Some 30 years later the marked moved to 4600 Sheriff Road. After Parker's death, his son Irving ran the market, while son Reginald opened a barber shop across the street. The Parkers supported neighborhood activities, including the Roper Recreation Center's baseball team.
Back:
Long a Country Town at the edge of Washington DC's urban center, Deanwood was forged out of former slave plantations during decades following the Civil War. It became one of Washington's earliest predominantly African American Communities.
Greater Deanwood today emcompasses the historic neighborhoods of Deanwood, Burrville, Lincoln Heights, and Whittingham.
In the 1800s, much of Washington's development followed decisions made by city leaders and investors, who favored areas northwest of Anacostia. Land here remained relatively untouched, and many streets were unpaved into the 1960s. Because builders chose not to apply racial restrictions on who could buy here, African American migrants found Deanwood welcoming, affordable, and convenient. The pioneering National Training School for Women and Girls, founded by Nannie Helen Burroughs (whose portrait appears on each Deanwood Heritage Trail sign), attracted educators to the neighborhood. New residents
often built their own homes and created communities where for years no one locked their doors, adults treated all children as their own, and children behaved accordingly. On this trail you will see rich parkland, handcrafted dwellings, and religious and social gathering places that have made Deanwood an oasis of dignity and self-determination for generations.
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