Evening star., 1950-11-13


The story is that he was dissatis-
fed with the editions available be-
cause the type was too small. He
had one printed with readable
type and presented it to all his
friends.
B. H. Warner had q town house
on Massachusetts, avenue where
the Fairfax Hotel now stands. He
had a country place on Georgis
avenue opposite the entrance ot
Walter Reed Hospital. But after
seeing Kensington Gardens on ar
1890 trip abroad, he decided tt
develop the acreage he owned al
Knowles Station on the Baltimore
& Ohio Railroad north of Chevy
Chase and build a summer home
for himself there.
Together with Crosby S. Noyes
editor of The Star, he gave the
community the Noyes Library
Oldest suburban library in the
Washington area.
He also built the Warner Me.
mortal Presbyterian Church il
honor of his parents.
Served During War.
Mr.. Warner had served in the
Adjutant Generals Office here dur
ing the Civil War and was active
in the G. A. r. Col. Clarence "
Sayer, who moved into Kensing-
ton in 1909, remembers that many
OF the early residents were G. A. r
men. They probably contributed
to making Kensington a Republi-
can island in Democratic Mont
gomery County. There was a Col
Brady and Col. Sumner, a Capt
Hendricks and a Capt. Hartshorn
And there was a Confederate vet.
eran named Gooding who hac
served with Mosby's raiders. H,
became a Republican, too.
For a time every one commute,
on the B. & o. and severa
Kensingston residents were killed
in the Terra Gotta wreck in tht
early 1900's. Mr.. Warner, a tai
bald man, used to walk to the sta.
ton mornings although he had 8
carriage team in the barn and q
phaeton, blackboard, trap, ano
a surrey with the fringe on top
His daughters remember that he
once brought a jaunting car back
from Ireland, but stares from thu
sidewalks made the family uncom-
Portable and it gathered dust in
the Massachusetts, avenue stable
He also owned a succession OF
automobiles before he died in 1913
The Warmers used to entertain
Washington notables at the bic
house and they were succeeded ir
residence there by Frederick D
Mckenney, noted constitutional
lawyer, and his family. The Nc
kenneyS used to entertain at Sum-
day noon breakfasts. Among the
guests were Chief Justice Edward
White and later Chief Justice Will
liam Howard Taft. The drivewa,
used to be lined with Pierce-Arrow
Peerless. Stevens Duryes and othe,
big cars. The McKenney's cal
was a Model T Ford. This usec
to distress Mrs. McKenney. He
daughter, Mrs. Arthur Wallact
Dunn of the Kennedy-W Warner
apartments, still remembers thu
family's satisfaction when hel
father acquired a Locomobile.
Mr.. McKenney died two year
ago and it has been unoccupiet
SINCE.
About 1900 a trolley line wa.
constructed from Kensington con.
Meeting with the Capital Traction
Co.'S lines at Chevy Chase Lake.
George D. Lamb, who movee
into Kensington in 1909, remem.
bers that the owner of the trolle,
line. a man named Phillips, usee
to substitute at the controls l.
one OF his two motormen did no
show up. He says one of tn,
motormen used to bring along /.
shotgun in the fall and if he say
partridges on the right of way
he would stop the car and wall
them along the track until h
could get good wing shot. Ane
on Halloweens the boys discovered
that just plain kerosene - tn,
source of light in every home
applied to the tracks would pre-
vent the trolley car from maxim,
an up grade.
Every one in KenSington kney
every one else, he says. Not onl,
did every newly arrived family ge
a courtesy call from all it's nev
neighbors, but every lady in tn,
community would put on her whit.
gloves and make a call on ever,
other lady every spring and fall
The families who did not kee,
COWS took milk from those whit
did and the latter were in tn,
majority.
Most every one had runnin,
water, either pumped to an attit
tank by windmill or by hand
Every one pumped by hand durin,
a prolonged calm. The kerosene
lamps were not ideal for reading
and almost every one went to BET
early and got up with the dawn.
Mr.. Lamb thinks outward ap.
tpearanceS are decelving and tina
Kensington has changed greatly ir
his 40 years residence. It's nice
there now. he says, but he's o.
the opinion that the old days wert
| the best.