Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association Meeting Tuesday 07/20/2010

Posted in Brookland, CUA on July 19th, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

Please join the Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association at their next meeting on Tuesday, July 20th at 7:00 PM. The meeting will take place in Margot Hall of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church at 3400 12th Street, NE (corner of 12th and Monroe Streets, NE).

The Special Guest for this meeting will be Robert Malesky. Mr. Malesky has lived in Brookland since 1970. He graduated from Catholic University and then worked for thirty years at National Public Radio where, among other things, he was the senior producer of Weekend Edition Sunday with Liane Hansen. Mr. Malesky is now a freelance writer and producer and has just completed a book entitled The Catholic University of America.

The Catholic University of America tells the story of CUA’s early founding and development into a world-renowned University. It is a fascinating history and one that is entwined in many ways with Brookland’s contemporaneous development as a neighborhood. Mr. Malesky will share stories from his book of those early years and will present a slide show of old photographs. Copies of his book will be available for purchase and a book-signing will follow.

When: July 20th, 2010
Where: Margot Hall of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church at 3400 12th Street, NE
Time: 7:00 PM

 

St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church

New Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association Website

Posted in Brookland on July 18th, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

This month the Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association launched their brand spanking new website.

The BNCA website contains a monthly meetings schedule, ways to volunteer, and information on neighborhood topics and issues including:

  • Persevering Green Space
  • Development
  • Metropolitan Branch Trail
  • 12th Street Powerlines
  • Brookland Community Kiosk
  • Fort Bunker Hill Park
  • Specials Events

Don’t forget to join the BNCA. If you are not yet a member and need to review membership complete the BNCA membership form.

Also I can’t wait for the BNCA to expand their online presence by including Facebook and Twitter accounts :)

Tuesday Brookland Farmers Market

Posted in Brookland on July 13th, 2010 by brookland – 2 Comments

Don’t forget to stop by the Tuesday Brookland tomorrow from 4-7pm. Once again Mike Tabor will have lots of delicious locally grown produce.

Our recently harvested garlic is cured and will be featured at our market. Peaches are in full swing and people have been raving about the variety we’ve been featuring…Century. Plus we should have apricots, sugar plums and the earliest of the summer apples.

There are three varieties of snap beans – green, royal burgundy and yellow sweet waxed beans. Parents tell us the kids love the royal burgundy because when cooked they turn green!

We’re finally into basil season and we’ll have plenty at each market.

We’ll also have plenty of vine ripe tomatoes, cucumbers, and loads of zucchini, yellow and sunburst squash.

PLEASE REMEMBER TO BRING PLASTIC BAGS, AND ANY EXTRA BAGS YOU CARE TO RECYCLE.

See you Tuesday! Mike

Brookland Farmers Market Brookland Farmers Market - Mike Tabor Brookland Farmers Market Neighborhood Farm Initiative Neighborhood Farm Initiative Neighborhood Farm Initiative

 

Where:Under the Michigan Ave by the Brookand-CUA Metro
When: Every Tuesday
Time: 4pm-7pm

 

Brookland Farmers Market

Great Space Development Open House Today at Noon

Posted in Brookland on June 22nd, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

Today at noon Great Space Development is having an Open House at 1707 Irving Street, NE, in charming BROOKLAND. It is a great little farmhouse in the city.

Great Space Development is in their second year of re-doing houses in DC. The open house will also have yummy sandwiches from MGM Roast Beef!

If you’re free and can drop by, RSVP at great.space.development@gmail.com

Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association Meeting Tuesday 06/15/2010

Posted in Brookland, Community on June 14th, 2010 by brookland – 1 Comment

The next meeting of the Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association on Tuesday, June 15, 2010 at 7:00 PM in upstairs Studio B at the Brooks Mansion at 901 Newton Street, NE.

This meeting’s special guest will be Anya Schoolman of the Mt. Pleasant Solar Cooperative. The Mt. Pleasant Solar Cooperative is an association of Mt. Pleasant residents working to bring solar energy to DC neighborhoods. By working together to purchase and negotiate as a group, they hope to cut the costs of residential solar in Mt. Pleasant and develop a model there that can be rolled out anywhere in the city. If you’ve ever thought about striking your own blow for energy independence, then this is the meeting for you!

We’ll also hear from Laurence Jones from the Office of Peoples’ Counsel’s Consumer Services Division. Mr. Jones will provide information on

  1. A recent decision on Pepco rates
  2. The revised Utility Consumer Bill of Rights
  3. Verizon’s Disconnection for Non-Payment policy.

And, lastly, we’ll hear an update and discuss several important Brookland issues including the Brookland Green, undergrounding the utility lines on 12th Street, and the development planned for the block containing the Colonel Brooks Tavern.

Contact: Caroline Petti carolinepetti@yahoo.com
President, Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association

When: June 15th, 2010
Where: Brooks Mansion 901 Newton Street, N.E.
Time: 7:00 PM

It’s not too early to mark your calendars for BNCA’s July 20th meeting. Our Special Guest for July’s meeting will be Robert Malesky. Mr. Malesky is a 40-year Brookland resident who has just completed a book on the history of Catholic University entitled The Catholic University of America. Mr. Malesky will describe the history of Catholic University and its relationship with Brookland, will share slides of historical photographs, and will be available to sign copies of his book.

 

Brooks Mansion

Brookland House and Garden Tour 2010

Posted in Brookland on June 4th, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

The Greater Brookland Garden Club are once again putting on the Brookland House and Garden Tour this Sunday June 6th from 12pm – 5pm.

This is the the tenth year anniversary of the House and Garden Tour — first started in 2000. This year there are more tour stops than any other year since the tour’s inception and we hope you enjoy the terrific variety of homes and gardens that Brookland has to offer. As a special feature this year, we are focusing on things “New Along 12th Street.” Our business corridor has recently received a face lift and there are new businesses and organizations popping up along its path.

The Brookland Fire House has recently completed renovation of its building. Aunt Bea’s B & B is up and running in a period bungalow. Casey Trees has moved its headquarters to Brookland and is moving towards completion of its office building. Make sure you stop by the Casey Trees staging area (tour stop #10) and learn about their many programs. Also be sure to talk to the Casey Trees representatives at each house to learn about the Trees of Note program. Finally today, please join us for a light picnic-style refreshment at our Tour Reception from 5 to 7 pm.

A big surprise is that The Brookland Fire Station will be displaying their antique steamer engine during the House and Garden Tour. Other great reason to attend the House and Garden Tour

Brookland Home and Garden Tour Flyers

When: Sunday June 6th

Where: All over Brookland

Time: 12pm-5pm

Tickets: Are $10 and can be purchased at Petals, Ribbons & Beyond, 3906 12th St. NE (corner of Quincy St. NE), Washington DC 20017.

Call (202) 636-2408 for more information.

Metropolitan Branch Trail Grand Opening Saturday June 5th

Posted in Brookland, Community, Transit on June 4th, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

The Metropolitan Branch Trail grand opening celebration is this Saturday June 5th from 10am-2pm.

Its a great opportunity to meet neighbors from nearby neighborhoods and to check out the trail.

The main activity center will be 700 Rhode Island Ave., NE, Washington, DC (Parking lot at Rhode Island Ave. Shopping Center, in front the Edgewood mural, both The Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association and the Edgewood Civic Association with be there so be sure to stop by and say hello.

The BNCA is sponsoring a “Stroll-the-Met” walk from Brookland to the Meet-the-Met party. Bring the kids! Bring the stroller! Bring the dog! The walk will meet at 11:00 am in front of Colonel Brooks Tavern at 901 Monroe Street and it’s about a 1 1/2 mile walk to to the Meet-the-Met festivities at the activity area.

Check out the links below for more information

Photo of the Day: Little Chestnut Oak

Posted in Brookland, Images of Brookland on June 3rd, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

I found this little gem right next to Brookland Hardware on Monroe Street.

I really like the brick that states: This Chestnut Oak will root deep and shade hot buildings, if you let it GROW.

I’m pulling for this little guy.

Franciscan Monastery Honey Extraction Workshop

Posted in Brookland on May 27th, 2010 by brookland – Be the first to comment

The bees have been busy. . . . . and there is honey to collect!

Join us for our 3rd Annual Workshop!

HONEY EXTRACTION WORKSHOP
…& take home a jar of honey

RSVP by email: retrojoe1@rcn.com or call 202-374-0541

Sponsored by the Franciscan Monastery Garden Guild

When: Saturday, May 29th, 2010
10 am – 2 pm

Where: Sacred Heart Conference Room
(lower level)
Franciscan Monastery
1400 Quincy Street NE
Washington, DC 20017

Cost: $15.00 per person

Franciscan Monastery

Local History: Catholic University of America Book by Bob Malesky

Posted in Brookland, Images of Brookland, Old School Brookland on May 24th, 2010 by robert.malesky – 1 Comment

(Bob Malesky is a 40-year Brookland resident and previous poster to Brookland Avenue who has just completed a new book. It’s a photographic history, entitled “The Catholic University of America,” for Arcadia Publishing. He offered to write a little preview for Brookland Avenue.)

Almost all the pictures in the book come from the CUA Archives, or to give it its full name, the American Catholic History Research Center and University Archives. It’s a great resource, and the school’s archivists are all first rate and extremely helpful. I spent most of last summer there, going through box after box of photos. I found most everything I wanted to find, with a few exceptions. The founder of Catholic University was a young heiress, Mary Gwendolen Caldwell. You would think the archives would have had a picture of her, but they didn’t. I began a concerted search of other sources. For a long time, the closest I was able to get was this engraving from an 1889 edition of Harper’s Weekly:

As you can see, it’s far from perfect. For one thing I wanted a real photo, not an engraving, plus it’s small and fuzzy and wouldn’t reproduce well, even if I found a better copy. Ms. Caldwell had no children, so there were no descendants to contact about family photos. After months of looking, I finally located one photo in an 1889 magazine. It still wasn’t perfect, but it was a photo, and my publisher was willing to accept it because of its rarity:

Mary Gwendolen Caldwell was only 21 years old when she pledged $300,000 to start the school, and she had the final say on where the school would be located. The majority of the nation’s bishops voted for the campus to be in Washington, D.C. and Ms. Caldwell agreed. After looking at available properties, they chose the grounds of the Middleton estate. Next door was the estate of Jehiel Brooks. Occasionally I’ve heard the question asked, which came first, Catholic University or Brookland? The answer is they started at the same time. Ms. Caldwell offered her financial pledge in 1884, but the school didn’t become official until Pope Leo XIII approved it, and that didn’t happen until 1887. Jehiel Brooks died in 1886, and his heirs sold the land to developers the next year, so both CUA and Brookland started in 1887.

Finding good pictures of Brookland was harder than anticipated. The CUA archives had some, mostly of the buildings of the various Catholic institutions that affiliated with the school. I used many of those pictures, but wound up going to the Library of Congress, the Historical Society of Washington and other sources for a few other photos. Here’s one of the original wooden frame St. Anthony’s church from about 1905.

It opened in 1896. For a few years before that, masses had been held in the home of Antoinette Margot, who had a large house at 10th & Bunker Hill Rd. When the new church was opened, Ms. Margot built a new home directly across 12th St. from it, about where the Brookland Post Office is today. She called it “Villa Marie,” and lived there for the rest of her life. I did find a photo of Villa Marie in the CUA archives. You can see the steeple of St. Anthony’s across the street:

I was surprised and pleased when I found a photo of my house on Newton St. from 1911, when Sisters of Mercy were living there as they attended Sisters College. I managed to find an excuse to put it in the book. That was fun. And there were a few pictures I didn’t use. Here’s one of another house on 12th St. This was next door to Villa Marie on 12th St., near the intersection with Monroe. At the time, Dr. Charles McCarthy lived there. I love the design of this one, especially the turret:

Nonetheless, I couldn’t find a good reason to include it in the book. I just wish there were more photos of early Brookland available, particularly from the very first years. I imagine descendants of the Brooks family have some, and probably some of the other older Brookland families. Perhaps someday someone will write one of these books just about the neighborhood, and maybe then we’ll be able to see more of old Brookland.

I’ll include one last picture that is in the book. This is the National Shrine as it is was approaching completion in the late 1950s. After three decades with just the foundation level and crypt church completed, construction finally zoomed along from 1954-58. It must have been fun for the neighborhood to watch. The Shrine was dedicated in 1959.

The book was published on Monday, May 17th. It’s available now from Amazon as well as other online sources, and should be in the local bookstores too.

– Bob Malesky

Links: