Known Information
James Reeder came to DC during the Civil War.
Sources
1870 Census
1870; Census Place: Washington Ward 3, Washington, District of Columbia;Roll: M593_124; Page: 449B
Map
Boschke, A, D McClelland, Hugh B Sweeny, Thos Blagden, and Blanchard & Mohun D. Mcclelland. Topographical map of the District of Columbia. Washington: D. McClelland, Blanchard & Mohun, 1861. Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/88694013/.
City Directory
Washington, District of Columbia, City Directory, 1870-1878, exclusive of 1872 which is incomplete
Newspapers
Evening Star
Washington, District of Columbia
24 Jun 1867, Mon • Page 4
Evening Star
Washington, District of Columbia
26 Sep 1872, Thu • Page 22
In 1870, Thomas Reader is listed in the City Directories as living at 1421 1st NW; he was living with his wife and infant daughter. The city directory listed him as a waiter, the census as a laborer. Marriage records in DC show the Thomas and Martha were married three year earlier in 1867.
His residence was almost to the edge of the official City of Washington. Located at O and 1st street NW, it was just a few blocks from Boundary Ave (now Florida Ave), which served as the boundary between the city and the county. This area of the City was still agricultural in nature, especially in comparison to the areas around Pennsylvania Avenue near the Capitol and the White House. The houses are sparser and farther apart. Large agricultural estates still dominated the landscape of the County, though a few were being broken into subdivisions, like Le Droit Park. In 1888, when Sanborne made Fire Insurance maps for the City of Washington, square 616 and its environs were not included in the atlas, presumably because there were not enough properties, or properties to be insured, built in this neighborhood. The Topographical map shows the contrast in population density between the area near Boundary Avenue and closer to the Capitol. Square 616 is two blocks south of Mrs. E Beale’s property.
In 1872, the Evening Star ran tax assessments on properties in the City, showing that Thomas and John Reeder owned part of lot 12 of square 616 in the city. That specific property had been put up for sale in 1867. Auctioners Cooper and Latimer advertised it as “unimproved property”. This suggests that when the property bought there were minimal buildings on the lot.
The city directories show that Thomas lived in an about 1421 1st NW throughout the 1870s until 1878:
- 1871: 1417 1st NW
- 1873: 1423 1st NW
- 1874: 1421 1st NW
- 1875: 1st near P NW
- 1876: 1421 1st NW
- 1877: 1419 1st NW
Further Research Needed:
- Identify the relationship of John Reeder to Thomas Reeder
- Locate the land records in the DC Archives
stories of Then 