2010

Most
Endangered
Places
for
Washington, DC

Beginning in 1996, the DC Preservation League has announced annually a list of

Most Endangered Places to draw attention to Washington, DC’s historically, cultur-
ally and architecturally significant places that may be threatened with ill-advised
alteration, demolition through neglect or abandonment.

The mission of the DC Preservation League is to preserve, protect and enhance the
historic and built environment of Washington, DC through advocacy and education.
Anne Archbold Hall,
19th Street and
Massachusetts Avenue, Anne Archbold Hall
NE, (Above) Central
Pavilion, (Right) 19th Street and Massachusetts Avenue, NE (Reservation 13)
Operating Room. DC Inventory of Historic Sites (2006)

Nominated by: Capitol Hill Restoration Society

Anne Archbold Hall was constructed in 1931-1932 as the Nurses’

Residence for Gallinger Municipal Hospital. Located in Southeast
Washington on Public Reservation 13, Gallinger Municipal Hospital (later
renamed DC General Hospital) was established by Congress in 1917 to
serve the District of Columbia’s poor. The Nurses’ Residence was first
envisioned in the 1921 plan for the hospital prepared by Municipal
Architect Snowden Ashford, but the stately U-shaped brick building with
limestone trim was designed under the supervision of his successor,
Albert L. Harris. The building is significant as the last intact example of
the hospital’s major Colonial Revival buildings. It was renamed Anne
Archbold Hall in 1952 in honor of the local philanthropist and advocate
for the hospital’s nurses and patients.

DCPL listed Anne Archbold Hall on its Most Endangered Places List in
2002 and 2003. At the time, a redevelopment plan for Reservation 13
called for the removal of all of the hospital buildings, including Anne
Archbold Hall. In response to the demolition threat, DCPL and the
Capitol Hill Restoration Society successfully nominated Anne Archbold
Hall to the DC Inventory of Historic Sites in 2006. In response to its
designation, the plan for Reservation 13 was revised to include the former
Nurses’ Residence as the focal point of the development’s residential
component. In the ensuing years, however, the proposed development
plans have languished and the corresponding rehabilitation of the building
never materialized. Vacant for the past decade, Anne Archbold suffers
from deferred maintenance and water damage. Unless the District
government takes to secure and stabilize the building, its potential role in
any future redevelopment plans for Reservation 13 could be
compromised.
(Above) Engine House
No. 10, (Right) DCFD
Engine 22 Truck 11, District of Columbia Historic Firehouses
5760 Georgia Avenue,
NW. Citywide
Many individually listed in the DC Inventory of Historic Sites or
contributing to a Historic District

Nominated by: Sally Berk and D. Peter Sefton

The designers of DC’s historic firehouses include prominent Washington

DC architects such as Leon Dessez and the firms of Wood, Donn, and
Deming, and Hornblower and Marshall, as well as the Office of the
Municipal Architect under Snowden Ashford, Albert Harris, and Nathan
Wyeth. These architects designed the firehouses as landmarks for their
respective neighborhoods. It is testimony to the quality of their designs
and craftsmanship that firehouses like Engine Company 22 on Georgia
Avenue, NW have remained in productive use for more than 100 years.
In recognition of their significance as works of public architecture, several
firehouses have been designated historic sites or listed as contributing
buildings in historic districts.

Despite protections under the historic preservation ordinance, many

historic DC firehouses are still at risk. Some de-accessioned firehouses
are the victim of long-term neglect, delayed rehabilitation efforts, or ill-
advised alterations. Firehouses in active use are also at risk of
unsympathetic modernization plans. The DC Preservation League listed
pre-World War II Firehouses on the 1999 Most Endangered Places List.
More than a decade later, the DC Preservation League hopes to refocus
attention on these important works of public architecture and ward
against the complacent assumption that historic firehouses are too self-
evidently significant to be insensitively remodeled, or that designated
landmarks are invulnerable to neglect or harm.
Metropolitan African
Methodist Episcopal
Church, 1518 M Street, Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church
NW, (Above) Front
Entrance, (Right) Stain 1518 M Street, NW
Glass Repair. DC Inventory of Historic Sites (1973)
National Register of Historic Places (1973)

Nominated by: Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church

The Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church located at 1518 M

Street, NW is home to Washington DC’s oldest African Methodist
Episcopal (A.M.E.) congregation. Designed by architect Samuel G. T.
Morsell, the Gothic style brick building has been a bastion of civil and
human rights since its dedication on May 30, 1886. The Metropolitan
Church was founded in 1838 to minister to the spiritual needs of
Washington DC’s African American population. Like its parent
domination, the Metropolitan Church was rooted in opposition to slavery
and the belief that African Americans were entitled to equality. A.M.E.
members throughout the nation contributed funds to construct the
Metropolitan Church. Their gifts are memorialized in Gothic building’s
majestic stained glass windows, which document the growth of the
A.M.E. denomination during the nineteenth century. The church’s
parishioners have included leading members of Washington DC’s African
American community, including Frederick Douglass, whose funeral
services were held at the church. Known as “the National Cathedral of
African Methodism,” the building continues to play an important role in
the spiritual life of Washington, DC.

The 125-year-old Metropolitan A.M.E. Church is in need of extensive

repairs and renovation. The building’s exterior walls suffer from
structural cracks and water infiltration and outdated mechanical systems
are taxing the already limited financial resources of the congregation. The
original stained glass windows are also deteriorating. In the face of these
challenges, the 1100-member congregation recently began a capital
campaign to raise funds to remove, restore, and reinstall the stained glass
windows. By listing the Metropolitan Church on the Most Endangered
Places List, the DC Preservation League aims to marshal the expertise
and resources of the preservation community to assist in the
congregation’s efforts.
(Above) 2253 Mount
View Place, SE, (2005),
(Center) 2253 Mount 2228, 2234, 2238 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, SE and
View Place, SE, (2010),
(Right) 2234 Martin 2253 Mount View Place, SE
Luther King Jr. Avenue, Contributing Buildings within the Anacostia Historic District
SE.
DC Inventory of Historic Sites (1973)
National Register of Historic Places (1978)

Nominated by: Historic Anacostia Block Association and David Garber

These contributing buildings within the Anacostia Historic District are

rare examples of prosperous single-family detached houses in this section
of Anacostia that date from around the turn of the twentieth century.
Currently in poor condition, the houses located along Martin Luther King
Jr. Avenue, SE are currently for sale and could potentially be demolished
to clear way for commercial uses. The house located on Mount View
Place, SE was previously listed in 2005, and in the subsequent 5 years,
has deteriorated further and has had its front porch removed.

Representative examples of demolition by neglect, the owners of these

structures are ignoring their responsibility to maintain, repair, and secure
the buildings which has resulted in the deterioration of the exterior
features and loss of structural integrity. This neglect has also added blight
to the surrounding neighborhood.

Located in Southeast Washington, the Anacostia Historic District contains

550 buildings dating from 1854-1930. It encompasses the area originally
known as Uniontown, one of Washington’s earliest suburbs, which was
incorporated in 1854.

The DC Preservation League will partner with the Historic Anacostia

Block Association and residents of Anacostia to refocus attention on these
important resources. DCPL will also seek to work with the property
owners to stabilize these structures, fulfill their obligation of basic
maintenance, and return these properties to productive use.