LineSpeakerSt TimeContentEn Time
1DCB_int_010.2851Were you-0.6613
3 0.7413were you born and raised in DC?2.2173 
4DCB_se1_ag4_f_012.3234Mm-hm.2.7716
5DCB_int_013.5360What [neighborhood?]4.2563
6DCB_se1_ag4_f_013.6921[<ts> Yes.]4.2603
7 4.8526Um,5.2942
9 5.4222Ivory City.6.1626 
10DCB_int_016.6482Which [one?]7.0229
11DCB_se1_ag4_f_016.8123[Northeast.]7.4846
12DCB_int_017.5286Northeast? And what is it called? What's the-8.9773
13DCB_se1_ag4_f_019.0387Ivory City.9.7790
14DCB_int_019.8551Ivy City?10.4633
15DCB_se1_ag4_f_0110.6514Ivory.11.1757
16DCB_int_0111.2691Ivory City.12.0424
17DCB_se1_ag4_f_0112.0414[Mm-hm.]12.4897
18DCB_int_0112.2295[Where's] that?12.6897
19DCB_se1_ag4_f_0113.7262Um, it's over there off of Trinidad.16.0073
21 16.1127M- M- [Montello Avenue.]17.9416 
22DCB_int_0116.4903[Oh.]17.1346
24 17.5067[Mm-hm.]17.9454 
25DCB_se1_ag4_f_0118.0150[Mm-hm.]18.4363
26DCB_int_0118.0150[Mm-hm.]18.4363
27DCB_se1_ag4_f_0118.5112Over there.19.0034
28DCB_int_0119.1569And so you've lived here all your life?20.4735
29DCB_se1_ag4_f_0120.5575All my life.21.4619
30DCB_int_0122.6759Um,23.5683
32 25.3185In school where'd you go?26.2429 
33DCB_se1_ag4_f_0127.0527Crummell.27.5569
35 27.7370That [was my-]28.3052 
36DCB_int_0127.9131[Crummell?]28.4413
37DCB_se1_ag4_f_0128.4987[Uh-huh.]28.9749
38DCB_int_0128.6014[High school?]29.0896
39DCB_se1_ag4_f_0129.3431No that was my elementary school.30.9719
40DCB_int_0130.9612Crummell.31.6055
41 33.8105Where's that?34.1627
43 34.4416Or where was it? I don't-35.2980 
44DCB_se1_ag4_f_0135.2900Um, Crummell? N-36.3025
45 36.4585I-36.5346
47 36.6426Ivory City.37.3127 
48DCB_int_0137.6351Oh it still [exists?]38.7036
49DCB_se1_ag4_f_0138.5195[Mm-hm.]39.0077
50 39.3426They done tore it down but the building is still [there.]41.9198
51DCB_int_0141.5116[It's still] there?42.1996
52DCB_se1_ag4_f_0142.2520Mm-hm.42.6506
53DCB_int_0142.7322Um,43.4085
55 43.8755what about your44.4077 
57 44.5718parents? Your father, was he born here?46.2238 
58DCB_se1_ag4_f_0146.5127No he was born in um,48.0754
60 48.4640<ts>48.5360 
62 48.8031Jenkinsville, South Carolina.50.4853 
63DCB_int_0152.9945And m-53.2439
65 53.3680mother?53.7202 
66DCB_se1_ag4_f_0154.1444Mother was born from55.1008
68 55.2169at Leavenworth, Kansas.56.6542 
69DCB_int_0156.9524Oh.57.3086
71 57.5847Wow.57.9129 
72DCB_se1_ag4_f_0158.2090<laugh>59.3503
73DCB_int_0159.5976So how did you end up here?60.7576
74DCB_se1_ag4_f_0161.6894I was born here, she /did/- she had all of us here.64.3014
75DCB_int_0164.5787And how m- You have- how many siblings do you have?66.3835
76DCB_se1_ag4_f_0166.4383Um, I have67.2143
78 67.4148ten sisters and four [brothers.]71.7015 
79DCB_int_0171.1032[Wow.] (whispered)71.5314
80DCB_se1_ag4_f_0171.8036Yeah. (whispered)72.4979
81DCB_int_0172.5479And what number are you?73.4963
82DCB_se1_ag4_f_0173.9125Seven.74.3259
83DCB_int_0175.1891Oh so you're right in the middle.76.4971
84DCB_se1_ag4_f_0176.5725Right in the middle.77.5970
86 77.8291I'm the last child from the first group.80.2756 
87DCB_int_0180.4437Okay, and then the- how big is the break between the two?82.8584
88DCB_se1_ag4_f_0182.9823Um,83.5265
90 83.7466three years.84.4733 
91DCB_int_0184.5150Three years and then it's [your-]85.8503
92DCB_se1_ag4_f_0185.5262[And] then the rest of ['em come along.]87.2888
93DCB_int_0186.6267[Ah gotcha.]87.7472
94DCB_se1_ag4_f_0188.0331[Mm-hm.]88.5611
95DCB_int_0188.1491[I'm'a move this so you can have some space] to move. What about-90.7664
96DCB_se1_ag4_f_0188.8375[Mm-hm.]89.2977
98 89.5458[Mm-hm.]89.9620 
99DCB_int_0191.0265what did your father do?91.8349
100DCB_se1_ag4_f_0192.1214<ts>92.2037
102 92.3317He was a boot black.93.5183 
103DCB_int_0194.0765What's that?94.4302
104DCB_se1_ag4_f_0194.8104Shine shoes.95.7849
105DCB_int_0195.7929Ah.96.7342
106DCB_se1_ag4_f_0197.6042Mm-hm.98.3086
108 98.5967He was a boot black.99.9293 
109DCB_int_0199.9773And what did your mom do?100.8001
110DCB_se1_ag4_f_01101.0042Uh, she did um,102.0736
112 102.7278maid's work.103.5722 
113DCB_int_01103.7042[Maid's work. She was a- Okay.]105.3050
114DCB_se1_ag4_f_01103.9043[Hou- you know,]104.7643
116 104.9408[in houses.]105.8813 
117DCB_int_01108.1157Alright.108.5159
119 108.9761So,109.4843 
121 110.1300I-110.2941 
123 110.5822This is great111.2065 
125 111.3399cause I don't think I've interviewed anybody from Ivory City so tell me a little bit about115.6339 
127 116.2609the neighborhood, especially when you were a child what you remember.119.1420 
128DCB_se1_ag4_f_01120.0281I remember121.1886
130 122.0398we had a store on the corner,123.6045 
132 124.6930um,125.2172 
134 125.3827I remember all of our- We knew all the neighbors cause it was like a small-129.9227 
136 130.1396it wasn't like130.7359 
138 131.0241big.131.3842 
140 132.0005We knew all the neighbors.133.4372 
142 133.9188The houses they was like135.3908 
144 135.5675some houses were nice, some of 'em was kind of ran down you know.138.9545 
146 139.5135Um,139.9348 
148 140.2178we'd- Our apartment141.4624 
150 142.2428was um, nineteen fifty-five144.2397 
151DCB_int_01144.4185Mm-hm.144.6746
152DCB_se1_ag4_f_01145.5430/RD-ADDRESS-6/146.6257
153DCB_int_01146.9357Okay.147.3119
154DCB_se1_ag4_f_01147.5840See we lived at Ivory City but the street was /RD-ADDRESS-6/150.9069
156 151.6540And you know I remember153.4388 
158 157.1953<laugh> getting beatings a lot. <laugh>159.9246 
159DCB_int_01158.9401[Oh. And why, cause you- cause you were the middle] child?161.4948
160DCB_se1_ag4_f_01160.3048<laugh>161.0491
161 161.7562Yeah.163.1608
163 163.3929Something like that and um-165.1177 
164DCB_int_01166.3651Did you get in trouble a lot as a kid?167.9958
165DCB_se1_ag4_f_01168.7262No.169.0302
166DCB_int_01169.2704No, okay.169.8907
167DCB_se1_ag4_f_01169.9868No.170.2149
169 170.8459Our parents didn't- They were kind of strict.173.0349 
171 173.2150They- they were-174.0577 
173 174.4116they were strict and then in a way they wasn't strict [you know] but178.2889 
174DCB_int_01177.6598[Hm.]178.0451
175DCB_se1_ag4_f_01178.6523when it came to us like, going outside like the kids do today, no we weren't allowed to do that.183.5359
177 183.9309We was allowed to all sit on the porch.185.9038 
179 186.3080[And what] we could do on the porch is what we did on the porch.189.2867 
180DCB_int_01186.3093[Mm.]186.7507
181DCB_se1_ag4_f_01189.6777If we stepped off the porch we would have to come in the house.192.3869
182DCB_int_01190.9573<laugh>191.2714
183 192.6830And so what kind of things did y'all do on the por- That's musta been a195.0030
185 195.1296crowded [porch.]195.9659 
186DCB_se1_ag4_f_01195.5137[Well-]195.8631
188 195.9619Yeah it [was.]196.7623 
189DCB_int_01196.4747[<laugh>]197.4221
190DCB_se1_ag4_f_01197.0158[And um], w- well we could step off the porch to play199.9772
191 200.3307jump rope [with each] other, double dutch.202.5331
192DCB_int_01200.9590[Mm-hm.]201.3192
193DCB_se1_ag4_f_01203.7977And we could204.3407
195 204.4047run up the hill cause there was like a hill right in front of our door so we could run up there long as our mother was at the window and she could see what we were doing.211.3617 
197 211.8403But she did allow our brothers to do a little more.214.3723 
198DCB_int_01215.0872And then was it- For-216.8040
200 216.9641In your neighborhood, is your- is your childhood home still there?219.7749 
201DCB_se1_ag4_f_01220.6125Yes.221.2432
202DCB_int_01221.7650Really?222.5174
203DCB_se1_ag4_f_01222.6495Yes.223.1561
205 223.4606I couldn't believe it because um,225.1414 
207 225.5455uh, three weeks ago I was with a friend of mine228.1135 
209 228.5323and they were close to Ivory City so I said, why don't you take me to Ivory City to see if232.9477 
211 233.3787you know, everything look the same. It looks more like a ghost city.236.5520 
213 237.2218But nineteen fifty-five where we stayed239.8404 
215 239.9685is still there.240.8835 
216DCB_int_01241.1264Really? How big was the house?242.4270
217DCB_se1_ag4_f_01243.3714Not a house, apartment.244.6200
218DCB_int_01244.7815It was an apar-245.2057
220 245.7259And then how many of you stayed in there?247.2346 
221DCB_se1_ag4_f_01247.5441All of us.248.2925
222DCB_int_01248.6526So it was what, sixteen, [seventeen of you guy-]251.1513
223DCB_se1_ag4_f_01250.1587[Mm-hm. Mm-hm.]251.8854
224DCB_int_01251.4193[and how many] rooms?252.6719
225DCB_se1_ag4_f_01254.1673One.254.6275
227 256.4564One.256.8766 
229 257.7237My- my mother and father had that room, we slept in the living rooms you know in sleeping bags,262.9622 
231 263.8880mattresses,265.2213 
233 265.5155it looked- we looked like a- a carpet.267.4804 
235 268.5663Once we all269.3546 
237 269.5147got into bed and went to sleep we lookeded like a carpet.272.0092 
238DCB_int_01272.5415And you stayed there until how old?274.1302
239DCB_se1_ag4_f_01274.2793<ts>274.3514
241 275.0317Until I was um,276.5054 
243 276.6435<sigh>278.6204 
245 280.4813I had to be like281.8739 
247 283.9897nine.284.6500 
249 284.9155Nine or eight.285.7839 
250DCB_int_01286.1961And then where did y'all move to?287.3206
251DCB_se1_ag4_f_01287.5327We moved to-288.6626
253 288.8227I- I remember that as if it was yesterday,290.7013 
255 291.1131we moved on Ainger-292.8139 
257 293.1928Ainger Street-294.5528 
259 294.8096Ainger Place Southeast.296.3303 
260DCB_int_01296.7985Okay so [you were in Northeast and then] you went over to [South, so you clo- close] by are you-300.7871
261DCB_se1_ag4_f_01297.1680[Off of Alabama A-]298.3886
263 299.1610[To Southeast.]300.1876 
264DCB_int_01300.9325Was it close by where FBR is now?302.6774
266 302.7534Or is it on the other [side?]303.9268 
267DCB_se1_ag4_f_01303.7138[On the] other side.304.5262
268DCB_int_01304.4862On the other [side.]305.1462
269DCB_se1_ag4_f_01304.9144[In] Woodland, and you mighta heard of Woodland Terrace?307.6861
270DCB_int_01307.1102[/Woodla-/ Mm-hm.]308.0035
271DCB_se1_ag4_f_01308.0826Yup.308.3067
273 308.9670My mother li- That's where we moved at.310.7332 
275 311.1654Ainger.311.7257 
277 312.2299They moved us in this house313.7712 
279 314.5377and this house was-315.4702 
281 315.5662Oh my god, it was full of rats.317.2662 
283 317.8166So we- we stayed up at night, we talked to each other321.1556 
285 321.2636ducking rats and322.5002 
287 323.0018then um, I say we lived in there for about325.3389 
289 326.5782a year.327.1969 
291 327.6027Our pictures were in the paper329.1467 
293 329.9025in um, The Post,331.1151 
295 331.5713you know, /ts-/ A- and I never forget the front-334.1497 
297 334.3339the um, the headline:335.4979 
299 337.3607Rats338.1050 
301 338.2411Big as Cats,339.2536 
303 339.3870which they was.340.4115 
305 341.0118And then after we lived there for a year,343.4223 
307 343.7092then they moved my mother down345.4299 
309 345.7981the street in one of the um,347.7670 
311 348.1486house-349.3619 
313 350.0335in one of the low income houses.351.8183 
314DCB_int_01351.8931Mm-hm.352.1371
315DCB_se1_ag4_f_01352.1972Five bedroom.353.2292
316DCB_int_01353.9020So that's the biggest house y'all had at that point cause you went from one [bedroom]357.4860
317DCB_se1_ag4_f_01357.0929[Yup.]357.4488
318 357.9052[Yup to- to this]358.8337
319DCB_int_01357.9292[to this other p-]358.8119
320DCB_se1_ag4_f_01358.9177other house359.5980
322 359.9049which we couldn't use none of the rooms because they was so-362.9063 
324 364.2337they just wasn't sanitary enough.366.4187 
326 366.5788I don't even know why they moved our- my mother in there but369.2160 
328 369.6389by us being young370.8016 
330 371.4078we didn't wanna take the picture but she made us get in it,374.0607 
332 374.1744w- [So,]374.6346 
333DCB_int_01374.3145[Right.]374.6306
334DCB_se1_ag4_f_01374.9041she- I guess she can get help376.2855
336 376.4809the way she did.377.2449 
338 377.6468Then she moved down the street,379.1628 
340 379.7077at um, twenty-three sixty,381.3405 
342 381.6514she stayed there for382.9520 
344 383.6403fifty-two years until she died.385.8603 
346 386.5684And387.0166 
348 387.4328I left home- When she moved down there, I left home at the age of thirteen.391.1021 
349DCB_int_01391.9377And where'd you do?392.6550
350DCB_se1_ag4_f_01393.9066All over the place.394.9164
352 395.0085I- I stayed up-396.0169 
354 396.1930um,396.5372 
356 396.6252up Northwest with my sister, she lived in the Dunbar Hotel, I don't know if anybody remember that.401.5422 
358 402.0865That was on Fifteenth and U.403.4518 
360 403.8941She stayed in there with her boyfriend, I stayed in there with her for a while.406.9874 
362 407.3664But then he wanted to start getting fresh, so I told her, she didn't believe me cause she was a drunk. <laugh>412.7463 
364 413.0585So,413.4318 
366 413.7268I stayed out in the street.414.7460 
368 415.3263I stayed in um, Meridian Park,417.1575 
370 417.3432that was417.7554 
372 417.9315[mostly-]418.7248 
373DCB_int_01418.2876[Mm-hm.]418.9570
374DCB_se1_ag4_f_01419.0894that was mostly where I stayed.420.7155
376 421.1277I stayed [there for like-]422.3077 
377DCB_int_01421.6039[Off of 14th] Street?422.6284
378DCB_se1_ag4_f_01422.6364Uh-huh.423.0166
380 423.4848I stayed in there for like three years.425.7472 
382 426.1928Off and on.426.9848 
384 427.7429A- Um, s- People would-428.8936 
386 429.1916I would meet people in the park and they would see that I didn't have nowhere to go, they would offer me over to their house, give me something to eat,435.1385 
388 435.5467let me take a shower,436.7112 
390 436.9553stuff like that, but then after that I had to go.439.2644 
392 439.5313So,439.8114 
394 439.9074majority of the times I slept in the park.442.0541 
396 442.5126Even in the winter time, I think that's why sometime I have trouble with this hip.445.7609 
397DCB_int_01447.2696[Wow.]448.1674
398DCB_se1_ag4_f_01448.0553[Mm-hm.]448.7957
399DCB_int_01448.8157And so then- So,449.9042
401 450.2203you grew up-450.9083 
403 451.3156Okay so you started in elementary school but while you were living in the park you didn't- Did you go to school?455.7537 
404DCB_se1_ag4_f_01455.7647<ts>455.8167
406 455.9808No.456.2209 
407DCB_int_01457.3945Mm-mm, so [you were just educated] in the [streets.]459.3314
408DCB_se1_ag4_f_01457.8947[Mm-mm.]458.3627
410 459.1353[Mm-hm.]459.6086 
411 459.8130Yup.460.0812
413 460.2973That's exactly what I tell people I-461.7379 
415 461.9140My- my knowledge came from the streets.463.8789 
417 464.2925Because when I left465.4050 
419 465.6731Crummell466.3705 
421 466.9697that was my elementary school, I went to Cramer.469.2041 
422DCB_int_01469.5897Mm-hm.470.1300
423DCB_se1_ag4_f_01470.2020[Yeah.]470.5566
424DCB_int_01470.2020[The- Not] too [far.]471.1660
425DCB_se1_ag4_f_01470.9863[Uh-huh.]471.5226
426DCB_int_01471.2905[Mm-hm.]471.7651
427DCB_se1_ag4_f_01471.6186[I] went to Cramer.472.4750
428 473.2782I473.6515
430 473.8584passed to the474.8069 
432 474.8949eighth grade.475.7113 
434 477.2414And then by me not478.4633 
436 478.5394you know, b- get- being able to get no help, nobody didn't wanna help me because back then in the day,483.0434 
438 483.4604you know like, it wasn't easy to get on public system, [get food stamps stuff like] that.487.5924 
439DCB_int_01486.1696[Mm mm-hm.]487.4262
440DCB_se1_ag4_f_01488.1653So,488.6107
442 488.9297I just489.3179 
444 489.9235stopped going to school and491.5523 
446 492.3847like I said I left home when I was thirteen,494.6097 
448 495.2327when my mother saw me again I was twenty-six.498.0461 
449DCB_int_01499.2280So for thirteen years.500.6646
450DCB_se1_ag4_f_01501.9480Yup, I lived off of people that was the ones that was nice enough to let me come and stay with 'em and other than that,507.4145
452 507.8295I was sleeping in the park509.0180 
454 509.4102when I felt like that wasn't safe some nights I would go in abandoned buildings, sleep in there.514.2738 
456 514.7968Sleep in elevator shafts that didn't work, you know.517.9783