Abstract Bobby Hill talks about being born in Washington, D.C. when the city was predominantly Black. He went to school in Powell Elementary and was interested in basketball and athletics at large. While in St. Mary’s College studying business, he starts to DJ for the student station. After graduating college, Bobby returns to D.C. and starts to go to many jazz events at DC Space, Bohemian Caverns, and other D.C. venues. He soon lands a gig helping at the famous WPFW Jazz and Justice station and this...

Abstract

In Part 1 of this interview, Brinnie and Angie recount the various places Brinnie lived in the District before moving to Peabody Street; the experience of living in a 2-bedroom house with Fort Slocum as their backyard; their neighbors; and another relative’s loss of her home in Petworth to eminent domain. Angie also discusses her memories of the schools she attended.

Abstract

In Part 2 of this interview, Angie talks about the experience of being one of the few Black students at historically white Wilson High School in the late 1960s. She also recounts finding cannonballs and steer bones in the woods behind the house on Peabody Street. Brinnie discusses the difficulty of finding a new house and the possibility of having to send some of her children away to live with their grandparents.

Abstract Please note this interview was recorded over a telephone call. Craig Simpson reflects on his life as a labor organizer, with special attention to the 1978 Metro Strike and the nearly three decades working with the labor movement as an employee of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). Craig remembers the events between 1974 and 1978 that led to the 1978 Metro wildcat strike in precise detail. While the previous generation of bus drivers was entirely white men, the...

Abstract In this oral history interview, Mrs. Jean Washington, a long time D.C. resident, discusses her life and experiences moving from Birmingham, Alabama, to Washington, D.C. Beginning with her early life, Mrs. Washington discusses her upbringing and educational experiences in the East St. Thomas neighborhood of Birmingham during the 1930s and 1940s. She also talks about attending Miles College, beginning her teaching career in Birmingham, and moving to Washington, DC, with her husband in 1958....

Abstract

Ms. Sarvis discusses growing up in D.C., mostly in Carver/Langston in Northeast, her early sense of herself as different and coming into her gender and sexuality, her older sister also being trans, going to clubs and performing, the impact of the AIDS epidemic, her time in prison, her involvement with transgender and HIV/AIDS organizations including Transgender Health Empowerment, and the changes in the city.

Abstract In this interview, Lewis Maiden discusses what Petworth was like when his family first moved there, when many of his neighbors and schoolmates were Italians. He talks about the various neighbors and local businesses he has known over the years since moving back to Petworth in 1971, including a former People’s Drug at Georgia and New Hampshire avenues that temporarily became a boxing club and youth community center. He talks about what he did for fun both as a teenager and as an adult,...

Abstract In this interview, Marietta discusses her childhood and her years as a young woman, when she lived in her family’s Le Droit Park home while attending Howard University. She also discusses her move to Petworth in 1950 with her husband and daughter Linda. She talks about what the neighborhood was like when they first moved there, before most of the white families moved away, and in later years when she was a member of the Block Club, which met monthly. She and Linda comment on how the...

Scope and Contents

This collection includes correspondence, legal documents, photographs, and newspaper clippings pertaining to Mamie H. McIlwee’s work advocating for resources for Petworth public schools and libraries.

Abstract In this oral history Michael Golash talks about how his early life influenced his decision to take a leadership role in the 1978 Metro wildcat strike and the ways that the strike played a central role in many of his future decisions. First, Golash speaks about growing up in Albany, New York where observing the city's party-machine helped to formulate his early ideas about politics. The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was another key point in his political development. Golash's...