Alley Life

[Laurie Verge]

On one of these threads, mention was made about the alleys in Washington and the people who lived in them. I could not remember the name of the book that was written about this, but I now have it in hand - thanks to Joan Chaconas, my staff member who is a whiz at D.C. history.

If interested, try locating Alley Life in Washington: Family, Community, Religion, and Folklife in the City, 1850-1970. Author is James Borchert, Published by University of Illinois Press in 1980.

[LincolnMan]

Are there still alleys in Washington? As kids in Detroit, that's where we practically lived. 'What's an alley?' says my adult son...

[L Verge]

There are still lots of alleys in D.C., but many have succumbed to development. I don't think they bear colorful names anymore either. nearby Alexandria, Virginia, still has named alleys.

[Joe Di Cola]

In Chicago, too, there are countless miles of alleys. At my maternal grandmother's house on south St. Lawrence Ave., during WWII when gasoline was being rationed, the milkman came down the alley in an old horse-drawn milk wagon.

[MaddieM]

http://www.amazon.com/Alley-Life-Washing...0252010035

[BettyO]

Same way in Petersburg and in Old Richmond - Baltimore is and was the very same....African Americans lived in the alleys usually - and they had names like "Pink Alley", "Jessamine Alley", "Tulip Alley" here in Richmond -

Most of these names are still here in Richmond - only they have now been renamed as "Streets" - rather than alleys -

[LincolnMan]

What was the original purpose of alleys? As a kid in Detroit they were mostly for garbage pick-up routes. Many modern towns and cities don't even have alleys.

[Linda Anderson]

What was the original purpose of alleys? As a kid in Detroit they were mostly for garbage pick-up routes. Many modern towns and cities don't even have alleys.

There was an alley between the Seward and Benjamin Ogle Tayloe houses that led to the Seward stable so maybe the alleys were like driveways in our time.

[Jim Page]

After reading this thread, I went down the alley behind our modern office building in downtown Washington, which is at Thomas Circle and 14th Street NW. Just down the alley behind our building I found this neat building; the address is 1333 Green Court. I asked a guy I worked with if he knew anything about it and he said the building is a pre-Civil War carriage house, used to be a massage parlor and is now a gay bar called the Green Lantern.



--Jim

[LincolnMan]

Really cool. Would love to see a Civil War era photograph of the building. The thought that the alleys back then were like driveways sounds right-a good way to conceptualize their usage.

[Laurie Verge]

The word is actually of French origin and means way to go. I looked up their original use, and it appears that they were ways for people to get to their backyards without having to go through the house. In D.C., it appears that they became part of the housing "market" as poor people were shoved out into the streets to make way for wealthier owners. This occurred here in the early 1800s, and was made worse with the influx of freed slaves.

[LincolnMan]

Interesting, Laurie. The part about being the way to get to backyards was certainly part of my experience. Alleys were the "short-cuts" to get somewhere faster-that and fence hopping.

[GARY POPOLO]

I come from Johnstown PA. and I grew up and did some of my best work in alleys. When ever we wanted to get from one place to another alleys were our highways. We could get from one friends house to another and never hit the main streets. And yes we used alot of alleys for our escapes from bullies and parents who wanted us home. And believe it or not most of the alleys I used as a boy are still there and I am sure being used by a new generation. Home has not changed much over the last fifty years.

[Jim Page]

Hi, All--

Here, from the Shorpy.com website, is a 1919 view of an unidentified Washington, DC, alley. Please note the name on the wagon: P. Chaconas & Co.



Laurie, could this have a connection with our friend, Joan? No matter what, it's a cool photo!

Also from Shorpy.com is a photo, from 1915, of the grocery itself.



Here's the original caption:
"P.K. Chaconas Co. Market." Pictured: Proprietor George Chaconas, whose grocery ("fancy fruits and vegetables") was at 924 Louisiana Avenue N.W. More info on the man and his grocery here: http://www.shorpy.com/node/4607

Further info: The top photo just received this info on Shorpy.com regarding its location: The dome appears to be that of the Portland Flats apartment building that stood at Thomas Circle bounded by 14th Street and Vermont Avenue, NW.

It's therefore possible that the alley shown is the same one I posted photos of a couple of weeks ago, as that location is right past Thomas Circle off 14th Street and Vermont Avenue, NW.

Even Further info: A Shorpy.com member positively identified that alley as the same one where I took my photo. The building on the far right (you just see the corner of it) is the present-day Green Lantern Bar.

--Jim

[LincolnMan]

The first picture seems quite symbolic-seeing the automobile parked in the background-with the horse and wagon in the forefront of the photograph-soon to be replaced by the horseless carriage.