Evening star., 1941-12-23
u. 5. Negotiate,
ForPurchase
0fFriiendship
Mclean Estate
Sought for Huge
Housing Project

A spokesman for the Federal Loan
Agency confirmed today reports that
| negotiations ARE now under way"
between the American Security &
Trust Co.. as trustee for the estate
OF the late John r. Mclean, and the
: Defense Homes Corp. for sale of the
! famous Friendship estate Of the Nc
Lean family to the Government for
a defense housing project. No con-
tract of sale has yet been signed, it
was explained
The sale depends on the outcome
of these negotiations, the spokeS-
man said.
According to preliminary reports
of the project. Defense Homes plans
to convert Friendship into a $4,000
900 housing development for defense
workers, featuring garden-type resi-
Dental apartments. including a
hotel to accommodate 1000 women,
off-street parking facilities and r.
minute express bus service to down.
town Washington.
Covers Five Blocks.
Friendship, owned by the Mclean
family for more than 40 years, COW
ers IS acres and five blocks along
Wisconsin avenue between Macomb
and Rodman streets.
Federal officials have had their
eye on housing potentialities of
Friendship for some time, particu-
larly on account of bus and street
car facilities in that neighborhood.
English colonists were granted
patent in 1895 to what is now
Friendship estate. Georgetown Col
lege acquired the property in the
early l8OO's, erecting on it monas-
terry for student priests. The
Friendship mansion of today is q,
restoration of that monastery. The
fagstone walk which the college had
laid is still there and known as the
Monks Walk"
Society Gathering Place.
The establishment now, however,
is a far cry from the monastery
1t contains beautiful garden, golf
course and swimming pool. The
mansion will be transformed into
a recreation center.
The college sold the estate late in
the last century to Mr.. Mclean. 1t
soon became the gathering place for
capital society.
Edward B. Mclean, son of. John
R, went there to live with his bride.
the former Evalyn Walsh OF Hope
diamond fame, soon after their
marriage. Republican leaders of the
Harding and Coolidge administra-
tions, 1921 to 1929 were among their
chief guests.
Three children of this marriage,
Edward B., John r. Arfd 'Evafy4,
grew up at Friendship, and ENo3yh, |
who is 40. was married there re-
Gently to Senator Reynolds Of North
Carolina who is SO years her senior.
Couple Leave Friendship.
Senator Reynolds and his bride,
who moved into Friendship when
they returned recently from a
honeymoon in Florida and Cuba,
are now living in four-room base
ment apartment they call The
Dugout in the residence he owns
at Second street NE. Renova-
tions are now under way and they
plan to live there for the duration
because it is just two-minute walk
to his Office, the Senator said.
Questioned about the possible sale
of Friendship, the Senator said:
"All know is what I read in the
papers. I haven't heard a thing of
it otherwise and haven't asked, be-
caus I don't consider it any of my
business"
He said he had no idea where
his mother-in-law, Mrs. Mclean,
would live If she abandoned Friend
ship to the Government. Mrs.
Mclean was not available for a
statement