Efforts to create Kalorama Park begin at a meeting held just across the street from what would become Kalorama Park at the Washington Heights Presbyterian Church on Columbiaand Kalorama Roads. Two Congressmen addressed 60 people in attendance at the Church, and the assembly created the Washington Heights Citizens Association, its first task - petition for a park. (The Presbyterians, take flight from the city (with their archive!) in 1955, move to Northern Bethesda, and build the Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church, The church they left behind, is still there at Kalorama, the old Columbia Road view, now blocked by a tall building. That church is Goodwill Baptist Church.) (See proposal to buy park,pdf April 11, 1906 Washington Post Attached)
By 1943, the National Capital Parks and Planning Commission approved construction of a playground for small children. The news story notes, "despite the bombings in England, plans are being furthered for postwar rebuilding of larger cities looking toward elimination of slums." (see 1943 playground plan.pdf Washington, Post June 19, 1943)
The DC Commissioners transfer land to the Chief of Engineers of the United States Army to convert it into a public park. (see 1906 Army Engineers transfer, Washington Post Nov 4, 1906)
In 1912, the Washington Heights Citizens Association asked Congress for $200,000 to buy the land from the Truesdale estate for a part of the park. (See park bought.pdf Washington Post April 10, 1912)
The Kalorama Citizens Association (KCA) celebrating its 20thanniversary in 1940 wants to build a community recreational center and a branch library in KaloramaPark. (see KCA history.pdf Oct 28, 1940)
In July 1948 Plans move forward for the Kalorama Structure. It was also likely that Kalorama Park was for whites only, since other playgrounds would "be designated as a Negro unit" and "so long as the adjacent school remains white, the playground be used by white children." In segregated DC, The nearby Adams School was white. The Morgan School and Happy Hollow Playground across 18th street was for the black children. The Morgan school replaced in the 1970’s with the Marie Reed Community and Recreational Center (see White only park.pdf July 14 1948 Washington Post.) http://lists.mutualaid.org/pipermail/mintwood-place/attachments/20100311/a7705aa5/attachment-0009.pdf
In 1960, with desegregation the Kalorama Citizens Association spearheaded a petition to close the playgrounds for older children in Kalorama park. They wanted the park designated for its aesthetic landscape. The effort met with resistance - other organizations formed to oppose depriving "the children in our neighborhood of a healthy recreational facility." (see 1960 adult park.pdf. July, 28, 1960)
Politics took on more pan-hemispheric dimensions as Spanish-speaking refugees arrived fleeing civil war and political repression back home. Newcomers from Chile, Argentina and eventually El Salvador and other parts of Latin America moved into neighborhoods such as Adams Morgan and Mount Pleasant. Protest marches and street theater became popular with activists.
J.R. Henig, “Gentrification in Adams Morgan,” GW Washington Studies No. 9, 1982 Steve Donkin summary: A trend began in the Adams Morgan neighborhood during the 1970s, when the community “showed a ‘whitening’ of the population. This occurred while the racial composition of the city as a whole remained virtually stable” Changes in the neighborhood’s color coincided with nearby construction of the Metrorail system and a jump in the average sales price of single-family homes from $27,116 in 1970 to $123,362 in 1979.)
by Vicky Troy and Charles Ragusa: “Look at the people they’re so unique/all of the languages which they speak.” “You want to stop, you know you should/cuz this is a real good neighborhood.” “Adams Morgan is so divine/I'll always love two triple-zero nine.”
C.R. Gibbs: The formal name of the statue is "Carrying a Rainbow on Your Shoulders." On the base of the 1997 sculpture is the motto Unity in Diversity. The statue was commissioned by the Friends of Meridian Hill Park in cooperation with local residents. Nearby is a plaque commemorating efforts in 1958 to integrate the neighborhood schools.
Eddie Becker Video: A proposal to replace the Message Board Kiosk in Adams Morgan with a sculpture pits advocates of "art" versus neighbors who want to keep the freedom to post and to read information on the Message Board Kiosk. Summer 2001
Robin Bell Video: Several hundred mostly young people reclaimed and closed a section of Columbia Road, in Adams Morgan, and had a street party, promoting bike riding literally over cars, and creating street art. Interviews with residents.
Brian Weaver: "...that alley and that mural have become my "ground zero," the mark of where my Adams Morgan lies in ruins. I was thrilled to see old friends and families that have lived in this neighborhood for generations, but I couldn’t help thinking about how many of them were pushed out of their homes last year by developers using the 95/5 loophole buying buildings from under them. [...] And my City lies in ruins. If you care about the heart and soul of this unique and dynamic neighborhood, if you love walking down the street and hearing multiple languages being spoken on the street, if you want to continue living in a place where tortillas (Spanish, Colombian and Mexican), mole, doro wat and gumbo are not considered "exotic" fare, if you believe it is important to preserve the lifeblood of Adams Morgan then I ask you to help us ensure that our little global community does not fade into the monotonous background of cookie cutter million dollar condos. Help us fight on issues that will impact the face and makeup of our beloved neighborhood for decades to come - issues such as Inclusionary zoning and true neighborhood policing and fight retain retail diversity in the neighborhood. To keep this city diverse and alive we must start to push the DC’s budget surplus (some $300 million) to help lower-income families in revitalizing neighborhoods keep or find affordable housing where they are. "
jordanna: A True Adams Morgan Original... 'It was the heyday of the Nicaraguan [and] El Salvadorian [revolutions], so there was all this artistic, cultural movement in the city,” says Aviles, an El Salvadorian immigrant who landed in Columbia Heights in 1980. “This mural tradition [started] in the Latino community. A bunch of murals were painted.” [...] But more than aesthetics, the mural’s appeal undoubtedly stems from its enduring message. Amid scenes of everyday neighborhood life—dancing, music and, in a nod to the artistic movement of the era, mural painting, symbols of corruption and danger pervade. At the center, one figure, his hands half-shielding his eyes, gazes in horror (or at least, bites his nails in anxiety) at a blazing television screen. Directly above it, the portrait of Augusto Pinochet (according to Pineda) hangs in a living room, his red eyes a menacing reminder of the Chilean dictator’s infamous cruelty—once a reality for some members of the community (or at least, for the Salazars). And sneakily, in the top right corner of the composition, it is three businessmen wearing suits and malicious grins, playing Monopoly with the neighborhood—raising rents and driving out immigrants.
The inaugural year for this event - a full day of skill-sharing amongst neighbors. Frying turkeys, fixing flat tires and dozens of other classes were offered by residents and hosted in local business venues.
Housemates happen across a neighbor walking his pet tortoise at Adams Morgan Day (on a side street).
Hundreds of local residents learned from each other at local business venues during this full day of skill-sharing. Knitting, samba, pool, philosophy, Photoshop, how to get out of a speeding ticket - you name it, someone was teaching it.
Local circulator bus begins
Home is Where the Tacos Are Washington’s only open-air Latino “market,” a three-days-a-week cluster of nearly a dozen vendors under tents in tiny, triangular Unity Park, at the corner of Euclid Street and Columbia Road NW.
1st biennial Biltmore and neighboring streets yard sale
A forgotten Cemetery rediscovered and Remembered.
Capital Bikeshare begins. AM neighborhood has the highest use during all times of the day, resulting in added bike stations.
By David Montgomery, September 30, 2011 Amid the sound of mariachis playing dirges and the aroma of Latin American street cuisine, a three-year-old District experiment in business incubation ended with hugs and bitterness in Adams Morgan on Friday afternoon.
Mural by Cita Sadeli aka Chelove
Walter Pierce Park Basketball Court
“Keep Driving On” mural by Karla “Karlisima” Rodas Painted on the side of Palestinian Mama Ayesha's Restaurant. http://www.mamaayeshas.com/history.html
Eddie Becker Video: What happens when a "Private" group takes over public space for a public event, rents it out to vendors and then tells the police to throw out anyone handing out material because only paying vendors can do that?
Robin Bell Video: DC Missing Drone Flight and Crash - Final flight of #3 T580 Quadcopter that went crash landed on roof. Flight over Adams Morgan Day, September 9, 2012.
“Muralism DC / Muralismo DC” is a short “webumentary” (15 min) on Washington D.C.’s rich Latino mural making tradition. The program documents murals on the streets of the nation’s capital and chronicles the history of Latino mural making in interviews with the artists and other experts. La pintura en muros nació sin lugar a dudas en las cavernas, cuando la prehistoria, mientras el hombre trataba de explicar su entorno y ubicarse en este planeta habitado por animales salvajes y un medio ambiente inhóspito. La Historia nos dice que desde siempre nos ha gustado decorar los muros para embellecer nuestro hábitat, pero también para representar a nuestras deidades, nuestros triunfos o celebrar a la naturaleza. 15 minutos.
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