Evening star., 1935-04-07

II, a.
They owned (present numbering),
2113, 2109 and 2107 Pennsylvania
avenue; from Georgetown, the third,
fifth and sixth houses of the row. The
sixth house was occupied by Benja-
min Stoddert and used as the Navy
Office. The Madisons likely lived in
No. 2113"
Samuel Houston, Governor of Ten
nessee, United States Senator and
first President of Texas, in later years
had his residence where formerly had
been the Navy Office, and Richard
Rush, the eminent statesman, also
resided in this row. In 1901 John
Coyle lived in the end house, nearest
Twenty-second street.
p EFERRING to this noted group of
houses-some of which remain
substantially as they were a century
and quarter ago-the late James
Croggon, who years ago wrote many
historical stories for The Star, has
this to say:
The most extensive, as well as
the first improvement in this section
was the erection of the six buildings
on square "a, north side of Pennsyl-
vania avenue between TWenty-flr
and Twenty-second streets, which
land. early in the corporate existence
of the city, bore an assessment of Is
quired by James Greneleaf in 1894,
and two years afterward he conveyed
the land, on which were the buildings,
to Isaac Pollock, while the rest of
the square was conveyed to w. M.
Duncan and others.
THE buildings were occupied be-
fore the end of 1897, for in a deed of
that year Capt. E. o. Wnliams' house,
at the west end of the row, is spoken
of. Before 1900 the houses of r.
Dennison, Jonah Thompson, Phillip
Fitzhugh and DR.. Dinsmore. as well
as one occupied by Mr.. Pollock, are
mentioned, and shortly afterward,
David Pollock's and James Duer's
names are connected with the
property.
AN addition of one house was
made to the row about 1900, William
Worthington erecting building at
the east end, similar to the others, of
one of which he was the owner. The
Worthington family resided here for
a half century or more. These houses
in 1902 were valued at 50, 900 each.
They were assessed, two to Mr..
Worthington, two to George Beale
Brown and one each to Brashears &
Martin.
Shortly after, J. B. Anderson be-
came an owner, and in 1904 and at
different times in the early part of
the century. among the owners were
Thomas Munroe, DR.. William John
ston, Col John Tayloe, L. D. Theaker,
Gen. Henry Lee. William Stewart,
Richard Veitch, Thomas Swami, H.
Moscrop, Julius A. de Sangnal and
c. H. Upton.
Among the early occupants were
Capt. John Woodside, Mrs. Thompson,
Mrs. Turner, Drs. Dinsmore and
Johnston, the Pollocks, DR.. Thomas
Sim, A. H. Derrick of the State De-
partment, William Parker of the War
Department and Mrs. Wells. Later
came Comdr. Sawyer, u. S. NJ; W..
A. Randall of the general land Office;
Richard Gott, chief clerk of the COM
missary generals office; James c.
Dunn, printer of the Washington Re
publican; Rev. job Guest, a Treasury
clerk; James Dixon and Mrs. H. R.
Vinson.
T was during the tenancy of Capt.
John Woodside that there was an
exciting fire in the row. Late one
night in 1916, the boarding house of
Mrs. Thompson took fire in the lower
portion, and soon the building was a
roaring mass Of flames. Most of the
occupants escaped by the closest mar
gin, some minus other dress than
night clothes. One of the guests,
however, was cut off from escape,
and was seen above the flames in
the second story, vainly reaching his
arm toward a window in the adjoining
hous and begging for some one to
assist him.
Capt. Woodside, who had proved
himself a born fireman at the Treas
ury fire in 1901, was looked to as q
leader, and both citizens and fire
men followed his direction. A ladder
was procured and the mans life was
saved, and not only that, but all the
other houses in the row, the flames
being confined to Mrs. Turner's house.
Squire Waters, besides the house
he owned in the row, had other prop
erty in the square and built a row of
five one-and-a-half-story brick build
ings west of his residence. This row
of small houses was dubbed the five
Kitchens There also resided on the
square, prior to 1880, Hugh O'Neal a
baker; William Godfrey, blacksmith; !;
William Watson, bother: Thomas
Lundy carpenter; Edward Dyer, and
later there was Bonneman's tavern,
Luchese's grocery and Henry Rochat's
woodward on the square"
The State Department could not
have remained long In the "Six Build
ings" df it ever was there, of which
there is some doubt). for upon the
completion Of the Seven Buildings" /"
in 1900. the department is said to
have changed its location to the
corner house Of that group at 1901
Pennsylvania avenue, when John
Marshall was the Secretary, which
must have been some time between
June 6, 1900, and March 4, 1901. From
February 4, 1901. to the end of John
Adams administration he was not
only Secretary of State, but Chief
Justice of the United States as we'll
A FTER the burning of the White
= House August "a, 1914, President
Madison moved into the Octagon al
Eighteenth street and New York ave-