Hi,
I am trying to find out some information about 3 different historical
schools in Washington DC.  I would like some information about theses
schools, about a page worth, if possible.  I also desperately need
have a detailed map of where theses schools are located and how
someone might get to them from dc's local metro station.

The schools are: Military Road School, Alexander Crummell School and
the William Syphax school.

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Request for Question Clarification by markj-ga on 12 May 2004 15:47 PDT

stephenh --

Only one of three locations is within reasonable walking distance from
a Metro (subway) station.  Since the DC Metrobus system is quite
complex, it might be useful for researchers to know what kind of
directions you need under the circumstances.  For example, would bus
route information to the schools' locations from a central DC location
(like Metro Center) be sufficient?

markj-ga

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Clarification of Question by stephenh-ga on 13 May 2004 09:36 PDT

Ok, I will define my question better, maybe that will get me an
answer.  I guess if I can get a map of it's street level exact
location of the three different schools that would be fine with me. 
Also to know a little history of the schools in the past years, that
would be very helpful too.

stephenh --

Thanks for your clarification.  

All three schools became listed in the National Register of Historic
Places on July 25, 2003.  Here, as you requested, is a summary of the
historical importance of each of them, along with their street
addresses and a link to a street map showing the precise location of
each.

Alexander Crummell School

The Alexander Crummell School is located at the intersection of
Gallaudet St., NE and Kendall Streets, NE in Northeast Washington. 
Here is a link to a Mapquest map showing the location of school (note
that you can zoom in or out by clicking boxes along the right border):
Mapquest: Map of Gallaudet and Kendall St., NE
http://tinyurl.com/29ts9

Here is some information about the school, from the National Park Service:

"Located at Kendall and Gallaudet streets, N.E., the Alexander
Crummell School was one of the earliest buildings designed by Snowden
Ashford when he was appointed the first Municipal Architect of the
District of Columbia in 1909. Constructed in 1910-11, the school is
dedicated to and memorializes the life and work of clergyman, teacher,
missionary, and orator Alexander Crummell (1819-1898), who devoted his
life to the abolition of slavery and the moral and intellectual
betterment and solidarity of African Americans. Founder and pastor of
St. Luke's Episcopal Church, the city's first independent black
Episcopal church, he preached his philosophy of the church as an
institution fostering social change, education and self-help. Crummell
taught at Howard University and, in 1897, he established a tradition
of black scholarship that inspired a new generation of black
intellectuals as founder and first president of the American Negro
Academy. Ashford's Crummell School design epitomizes his initial
approach to public school architecture, designing distinctive
buildings while working on a tight budget within the eight-room
neighborhood school plan developed by the Office of the Building
Inspector. The red brick, two-story Renaissance style school is
appointed with stone, stucco and tile detail and large banks of
windows. Throughout its history, the Crummell School was a focal point
of the Ivy City community and was vigorously supported by the Ivy City
Citizens Association, one of the first such organizations in the city.
Despite such strong community support, extreme overcrowding and
changing conditions led to the closing of the school and its transfer
to the DC Department of General Services in 1977."



Military Road School

The Military Road School is located at 1375 Missouri Ave., NW in
Northwest Washington.  Here is a link to a Mapquest map of its precise
location:
Mapquest: Map Showing Location of 1375 Missouri Ave., NW
http://tinyurl.com/355lb


Here is what the National Park Service has to say about the school:

"Constructed in 1912 on the site of one of the city's first public
schools built for freedmen, the Military Road School retains its
historical connection with the struggle by African Americans to secure
the benefits of public education. The outline of the original
schoolhouse, built in the Civil War when black refugees sought
protection under the watch of the Union military, is shown on the
construction plans for the present building. For years the Military
Road School served as the only school available to African Americans a
large area of Upper Northwest Washington, D.C. With public school
desegregation, it was closed in 1954, and has been used for various
public and education activities since that time. A two story high red
brick building with three bays and full English basement, the Military
Road School, is located at 1375 Missouri Avenue."



William Syphax School

The original address of the William Syphax School was 1360 Half St.,
SW in Southwest Washington.  The school building is still there,
located in the 1300 block, with its exterior preserved, but its
interior has been converted to a community center.

Here is a Mapquest map of its precise location:
Mapquest: Map of Location of 1300 Block of Half St., SW
http://tinyurl.com/2tz2q


And here is information about the school and its building:


"The William Syphax School is dedicated to and memorializes the life
and work of William Syphax, a prominent African American who worked
tirelessly to create a public school system in the District of
Columbia with equal educational opportunities for African Americans
until his death in 1894. The William Syphax School, located at 1360
Half Street, S.W., was constructed in 1909-10. A private developer who
plans to restore the original school as a community center has
purchased Syphax School. Designed in 1900 by noted Washington
architects Marsh & Peter in a Colonial Revival style, the red brick
building is two stories tall with full English basement and attic."



Here is a link to the National Park Service Web page that contains
this information, along with photographs of each of the school
buildings:
National Park Service: D.C. Schools
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/feature/afam/2004/dcschools.htm


Additional Information:

Here are links to sites with more information about each of the three
schools and their namesakes:

IndyMedia: Support Ivy City's Struggle to Save the Crummell School
http://dc.indymedia.org/newswire/display/26316/index.php

National Park Service:  The Syphax Family
http://www.nps.gov/arho/tour/history/syphax.html

Fannie Mae Foundation (this page contains driving directions to the Syphax School)
http://www.mannadc.org/mediacenter/PR03172003.htm

Cultural Tourism D.C.: Military Road School
http://www.culturaltourismdc.org/info-url3948/info-url_show.htm?doc_id=213177&attrib_id=7963



Search Strategy:

I found the basic information with the following Google search:
"crummell school" dc
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22crummell+school%22+dc

 
I found the additional information with these Google searches:
"syphax school"
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22syphax+school%22

"military road school"
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22military+road+school%22

Finally, I used Mapquest to generate the maps showing the precise
locations of the schools.


I am confident that this is information you are seeking.  If anything
is unclear, or if any of the links don't work properly, please ask for
clarification before rating this answer.


markj-ga

Thank you very much for the information which you provide me. It was
very helpful and great.  You are a outstanding researcher and really
know your stuff !

stephenh --

Thanks much for the rating, the kind words and the nice tip.

markj-ga

Hi thier Markj-ga

You know I submitted another question. the "Old Covered Spring House"
is also my question. Do you think perhaps that you could also work on
that question for me.  I really would appreciate what you could do.

stephenh-ga