Abstract

Anita Hammond shares her life from her earliest memory as a child growing up in segregated, farming community of Seaford, Delaware to her currently life in Penn Branch neighborhood, in Washington, D.C. She has lived in the neighborhood, since 1965. She shares her vivid memories of the people, neighborhood association and nearby community businesses. Finally, Mrs. Hammond shares and how COVID-19 has impacted her life.

Abstract Barbara Morgan is a second-generation Washingtonian and a well-known community activist. In her interview, she shares her extraordinary family history and her early experiences growing up in Northwest quadrants of Washington, DC during the 1940s and 1950s, during segregation. Barbara moved into Penn Branch approximately one year after she married her husband in 1962. The neighborhood was then known as Ft. Dupont Park. However, she explains how the name of the neighborhood was changed out of...

Abstract This oral history interview was conducted for 'We Are Penn Branch' oral history project. Baxter Gee and Judith A. Gee shared stories about their lives before and after moving to the Penn Branch neighborhood in 1971. They gleefully tell the story of how they met and married. Baxter Gee also share stories about his military career traveling around the world and living for several years in Japan and Hawaii, before relocation to Washington, D.C. Both Judy Gee and Baxter Gee discuss memories of...

Abstract Diane Alexander and her daughter Yvette Alexander reflect on their childhood, family life, careers, and experiences as long-time residents of Penn Branch. Diane Alexander shares her experience searching for a home with her husband and becoming a first-time home buyer in Penn Branch. Once they settled into the neighborhood, Diane Alexander described it as a friendly and quiet to place to live with easy access to grocery stores, restaurants, and a movie theater. Although Diane and Yvette...

Abstract Dr. James Baldwin gives an overview of his life from his childhood in North Carolina to his enlistment in the U.S. Army and now legendary service as a part of the legendary 784th Tank Battalion that supported the liberation of Holland. He also discusses how he and his wife, Ann Baldwin (1921-2006), purchased their home in the Penn Branch neighborhood in southeast Washington, D.C., in the early 1960s and were among the first African American families to integrate the community. He briefly...

Abstract President of both the Fairlawn Citizen Association and the D.C. Federation of Civic Associations, Graylin Presbury, describes the Covid19 pandemic and its disproportionate impact on Black residents of low-income and elders in particular. He recounts various adventures as a volunteer for the Student Conservation Association and the majestic wild spaces he witnessed. He also regales harrowing experiences in which both he and his Father (on separate occasions) were arrested due to racial...

Abstract In this interview, Hairston discusses his role in integrating the 1300 block of Kennedy Street NW in the mid-1950s and his move to D.C.’s Shepherd Park neighborhood in 1963, where he joined the efforts of Neighbors, Inc. to oppose blockbusting, racial steering, and other forms of racial discrimination in housing. He also discusses his daughters’ experiences in D.C.’s newly- integrated schools and later work by Neighbors, Inc. to stop the construction of freeways through D.C., promote traffic...

Abstract In this interview, Muriel discusses her childhood and her years as a young woman. Muriel discusses her experiences navigating her K-12 schools. Most notably, Muriel discusses her experience of racism and racial integration at Roosevelt High School. Muriel draws from her experiences and the observations she made of her classmates. Muriel discusses her higher education experiences at Howard University. During this time and after graduating from Roosevelt, Muriel was able to travel for social...

Abstract

This is an interview with the Brookland Manor Resident Council President, Minnie Elliott. Ms. Elliott currently resides in Brookland Manor and describes her efforts to bring resources and services to the residents of Brookland Manor. These efforts subsequently led her to collaborate with the Edgewood/Brookland Family Support Collaborative (E/BFSC). Ms. Elliott explains the impact that E/BFSC had and continues to have on the residents in Brookland Manor.

Abstract

Patricia Quander Hall shares hear earliest memories growing up in Lynchburg, Virginia and goes on to discusses how she and her husband, Burt Hall, Sr., ended up becoming a part of a wave of new, Black professionals who first integrated the Penn Branch neighborhood in southeast Washington, D.C. She shares what it was like to live in the community as a young person of color in the 1960s and she shares her opinions on life today as a senior living in Penn Branch.