[Lincolnparkdc] Lincoln Park oral history transcript

Noah Bopp noah_bopp at yahoo.com
Sun Jan 12 01:37:34 EST 2025


 The race track was a bicycle track!  A movement to create one in our neighborhood apparently began in 1897 and was lead by Robert "R.M." Dobbins, a bicycle merchant (1425 Pennsylvania NW and later 1206 F Street), backed by several unknown investors.  The Post referred to the location - one of a few possibilities - as in "the Harlem of Washington" "near the terminus of the Metropolitan Railroad" (which you can see across the street in the map shared earlier).  It seems that another site was selected, but after it fell on hard times the local cycling community came back here.  
The Post and Evening Star record the public opening of "Coliseum Park" and its six-laps-to-the-mile bowl track as the 18th of May, 1901.  The location given was 14th and East Capitol, but later articles about the same park give a more precise proper address - 15th (or 14th) and A.  At the time the track was considered "one of the finest in the country," "the most perfect in the country," and it was "brilliantly illuminated" by thousands of overhead electric lights at night.  The entrance to the park was "unusually picturesque and substantial, large pillars and bracket work being used with decorative effect,"  2000 could squeeze into the grandstand (likely outlined on the map) with an extension serving 2,000 more. (A few days before the opening, the Star breathlessly claimed that 5,000 had seen "crack" world champion Harry Elkes take practice runs on the still-incomplete track; later that month an article said "nearly 4,000" attended a race at the Park.)  Many world records were broken on the Coliseum track - there is some indication that the quality of the race track helped with this.  
At the time, bicycles used in racing were sometimes called "motorcycles" and there were "motor-paced" and "motor" races - I would need to research this more to understand the difference and what was meant by "motor."

Various other sporting events were held at the park over the years, including football and baseball, and over time there is less and less mention of cycling there.  Black and white alike used the park, though sometimes separately - a 1904 Evening Star article about an African American athletic meet starts, "Colored help was scarce in the nation's capital yesterday afternoon, nearly everyone of African descent who could raise the price wending his or her way eastward to Coliseum Park."  
The grandstands were taken down in 1906, according to classified ads in the Evening Star asking for bids on the lumber.  (The lumber had originally been used at President McKinley's second inauguration - you may be able to see those stands in the firm of that event made by Thomas Edison.)   I would not be surprised if someone with a bit more time than I discovered that homes were built on Square 1056 soon after.
I hope this was half as fun for some to read as it was for me to research!
      --Noah
    On Friday, January 10, 2025, 04:00:26 PM EST, Hilary Benson <hilarywinklerbenson at gmail.com> wrote:  
 
 Thank you, John!   Which building were you in?  I know the building at the SE corner of the intersection was, earlier in the century, another market called Mike's.


On Fri, Jan 10, 2025 at 11:40 AM John Hirschmann <hirschj154 at gmail.com> wrote:

We lived opposite it starting in 1973. There was no activity there at the time related to making sledge hammers. I recall hearing the same history you apparently did that it had been a sledge hammer factory. The two components were mated there. 


John

John F Hirschmann hirschj154 at gmail.comSent from my iPad

On Jan 10, 2025, at 09:09, Hilary Benson <hilarywinklerbenson at gmail.com> wrote:



Thank you, Peter.  I have not met Hazel.  I seem always to have a shift scheduled when we find out about the KY Ave. block party!  Maybe better luck this year.
Having brought coals to Newcastle, I'm happy to have started this thread about local house histories.  Our building at 201-203 13th Street SE was built in 1910 by Albert Carry as a commercial development.  It was originally a notions or sewing supplies shop; the proprietor, Mamie Paulus, died in 1934 after complications from a fractured hip she sustained after falling on the ice at Kentucky & C SE!  Then it was the Try-Me Market up through at least 1960.  
However, I have heard from neighbors that in the late 60s-70s there was some kind of sledgehammer production going on at this address.  They mentioned seeing sledgehammers outside "drying."   Any chance anyone has any knowledge of this? 
Cheers,
Hilary
On Thu, Jan 9, 2025 at 9:09 AM Peter Barclay <barclaypj at gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Hilary, 
Thank you for sharing.  This interview was conducted by Hazel Kreinheder, who is also a long-time resident of the Hill and KY Ave.  If you have been to a KY Ave Block party, you have probably met her.  They bought their house in 1963, which, I believe, makes her the longest-living resident of Kentucky Ave., if not more than most folks on the hill.  
She shared her oral history of living on the hill, using the same outline from the “74 interview, back in 2015.  You can read her story here - https://www.capitolhillhistory.org/interviews/hazel-kreinheder.  It is quite interesting.  Hazel talks about the fires on H street during the riots, bootlegging, the creation of the Historical District (she was instrumental in establishing it), her involvement with the Capitol Hill Village, when the metro arrived. etc.  Lots of very interesting information.  
There’s so much great information on this website. I am looking forward to reading the stories of the Canales (of Easter Market fame) 
Thanks and enjoy. 
PeterKY Ave. 



On Jan 8, 2025, at 09:57, Hilary Benson <hilarywinklerbenson at gmail.com> wrote:
Hi All,
I ran across this oral history from 1974.  It mentions many neighborhood addresses which may be of interest to people on this listserv.
Cheers, Hilary
https://www.capitolhillhistory.org/interviews/w-milton-sladentranscript - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EmcIDrEvORtZpB3ZWlnB7wzaXAT2GOm8/view

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