I was researching some of the infill developments on the Hill recently, and discovered that one of them was built on the former site of a Catholic school. I wanted to know more about it, but struck out in my usual sources. Fortunately, the church connected with the school had done the research, and posted it on their website, and thus I was able to find out more about this corner of Capitol Hill.
In 1892, a group of African American Catholics split from St. Peter’s church. They founded a group that they named after St. Benedict, and met in the St. Peter’s basement for their worship service. The same year, a Mary Atkins, of Baltimore, offered them land – including a house – at the corner of 8th and C Streets Southeast for their use. In September of that year, several Oblate Sisters of Providence moved into the house. The Oblate Sisters are a religious institute that had been founded in 1829, and was based in Baltimore. They focused on running schools and orphanages for African American children in several cities around the country, and were thus well-suited to be in charge of this new school.
St Anns in 1895 (Holy Comforter-St Cyprians)
On October 3, 1892. they opened the school to students. At the time, it was known as St. Ann’s school. The first year, there were only 35 children in two classes, but the school grew rapidly.
The following year, now ready for their own church building, the church known as St. Benedict’s was recognized as a parish, and given the name St. Cyprian, a 3rd Century North African martyr.
Even as the church broke ground and built their church at the corner of 13th and C, they were planning on increasing the size of their school. In 1894, work began on a school on 8th Street, and classes began there in September 1895. With the increased size, they could now also offer boarding.
Over the next years, the school expanded until it had 430 students spread over eight elementary and two high school classes. Extracurricular activities included all manner of music, including bands and orchestras, as well as sports, including baseball, football, and basketball.
Changing times and demographics also meant changes for the church and its school. Thus, in 1965, the St. Cyprian school merged with its fellow Catholic school attached to the Holy Comforter church on East Capitol Street. The following year, the two parishes merged to create Holy Comforter-Saint Cyprian Roman Catholic Church.
The school building was sold to Barrett Linde, who was already making a name for himself as a builder on Capitol Hill. Linde briefly considered converting the school into condos, but “neighbors had no interest in the old buildings,” as he was quoted as having said in the Washington Post. Instead, everything was torn down and replaced with 17 townhouses, which sold for up to $45,000 each. They found ready buyers, including – as the Post remarked – some “families [with] young children.”