Attachment A 2023-1212 ROD Historic Preservation meeting minutes.pdf

MEETING MINUTES

www.smithgroup.com

PROJECT ROD Modernization MEETING NO. 5

PROJECT NO. 14841.000 MEETING DATE 12/12/2023

SUBJECT Historic Preservation MEETING TIME 11:00 AM

PREPARED BY Bob Sly MEETING LOCATION 515 D Street, NW

ATTENDED NAME COMPANY

X Danielle Reinhold DC Courts Capital Projects

X Catherine Bane DC Courts Capital Projects

X Andrew Lewis DC Historic Preservation Office

X Kim Williams DC Historic Preservation Office

X Scott Lee AECOM Construction Management Lead

X Bob Sly SmithGroup Project Manager

X Jim Shepherd Smithgroup Principal in Charge

X Grace Lee SmithGroup Historic Preservation

NOTES

The DC Courts, SmithGroup and the DC Historic Preservation Office representatives toured the Recorder of

Deeds Building at 515 D Street, NW to discuss proposed modernization upgrades as they relate to the

Building’s historic preservation approach. The team walked the First and Second Floors as well as the exterior. Historic element discussions were intended for preliminary guidance and did not constitute any formal review or direction.

1. The team discussed existing National Register nomination information that is available.

• J. Shepherd indicated that his version of the nomination didn’t seem complete.

• Ms. Williams indicated she would send an updated version of the NRHP nomination and recommends that an amendment be created if needed with any variations in existing conditions that were described based on SmithGroup’s investigation and documentation.

• Mr. Lewis also provided the DC Inventory Designation as well that specifically lists the

Period of Significance of the building to be 1943-1945. The designated interior spaces in that document include:

o First Floor – All spaces exclusive of stairwell, elevators and delivery room o Second Floor – Library and Office of the Recorder.

Significant features include:

o The seven wall murals o The Selma Burke base relief of Roosevelt o Marble wall paneling, terrazzo flooring (First Floor Lobby) o Wood paneling and parquet floor o Terrazzo flooring o Original ceiling finishes

2. Future Modernization Conceptual Bridging Documentation

• Mr. Lewis asked that a review by the DC HPO be completed for the 35% Bridging

Documents. Review will include the exterior, but also will extend to the interiors for the Lobby, Library, ROD Office Suite, and Liber Room skylights.

3. Historical Building Elements

• Lobby Stair Handrails – Mr. Lewis would like to see these retained and to modify to meet code.

• Entry Doors – Mr. Lewis offered some options for the building historic bronze entry doors to consider because they do not currently meet building or accessibility code requirements:

i. Provide single door with sidelites on each side to remain symmetrical in the opening.

ii. Restore existing doors and install automatic openers. Push button actuator locations TBD. This was the preferred option.

• Building Murals (total of 7 murals) – Mr. Lewis would like to be present when the 7 existing Murals are uncovered for restoration assessment by Evergreene Studios, SmithGroup’s mural conservation consultant. SmithGroup will coordinate the day/time with Mr. Lewis. Currently scheduled to start on January 10th.

• Lobby Backlit Signage – Mr. Lewis would like these signage elements to be restored if possible. The team asked if the sign could be replaced with a blank plate or new messaging for the current use. Mr. Lewis preferred supplemental signage be added for wayfinding and to leave the current backlit sign messaging as-is. This may cause confusion for the building tenants and public and will continue to be discussed and evaluated as the design progresses.

• Elevators and Elevator Doorways – SmithGroup indicated that current plan is to continue forward with two elevators, but full replacement of both (one as a stretcher compliant elevator). The back of the shaft will require extending, but the width of the shaft is currently believed to be able to remain the same width. Mr. Lewis wanted to ensure the existing doorway locations were maintained.

• Existing Building Stair – Mr. Lewis would prefer to retain the existing stair and modify the rail (keeping the original) for code compliance even though the stair is not part of the designated interior spaces. SmithGroup explained the existing risers are not code compliant, as they are more than 7” high. Mr. Lewis was not sure who the AHJ would be for this code compliance decision. SmithGroup to survey each riser for the variance in dimensions and send to Mr. Lewis. (See attached stair riser schedule).

• Liber Room – Mr. Lewis determined the Liber Room no longer has any historical elements for preservation, other than the skylights above. SmithGroup will consider the skylight restration in its plans.

• Water (drinking) Fountains – Mr. Lewis indicated the existing waters fountains should be left in place if possible. These fountains are no longer operable or code complaint. The fountain in the Liber Room will likely no longer be accessible by the public once that area becomes an employee suite.

• 2nd Floor Office of the Recorder Suite – Mr. Lewis indicated to try to preserve this suite of rooms and encouraged the team to keep the terrazzo corridor on the 2nd floor only, as it provides related historical access to the other historical rooms on this floor.

• 2nd Floor Library – Mr. Lewis indicated to try to preserve the Library, fireplace and mural above the fireplace.

• Building Windows – Mr. Lewis indicated to focus on restoration of the windows, rather than replacement. Blast and storm windows can be separate and internal to the historical windows. SmithGroup indicated they were looking at options where insulated glass can be retrofitted into the existing window frames.

• Exterior East Areaway (at the vehicular ramp) – The team asked if the areaway could be removed and filled to minimize the choke point at the vehicular ramp to the parking garage. Mr. Lewis had no issues with its removal.

4. Future Project Reviews

• Based on the scope of work, Mr. Lewis believed the Historic Preservation Office review can be kept to staff reviews rather than the Historic Preservation Review

Board.

• At Draft 35% Bridging documents, Mr. Lewis believed that both CFA and NCPC will want to provide input. CFA comments would be limited to the exterior only.

• The team will look to coordinate a joint meeting with ownership, the design team, DC

HPO, CFA and NCPC for a late January/early February meeting to discuss progress and direction.

• DDOT – Mr. Lewis recommended we coordinate any sidewalk updates with DDOT.

He thought they may be open to alterations that would extend into the public way

(i.e. smaller landing and ramp) rather than more extensive sidewalk upgrades.

STATUS ACTION ITEMS NOTES

Complete Provide updated historic register Received same week Pending Coordinate site visit with Mr. Lewis for mural reveal Currently Jan. 10th. Will confirm and reach out in early January with confirmation.

Pending Next meeting with HPO, CFA, NCPC To be coordinated in January

END OF MINUTES

If the information contained in these minutes does not reflect your understanding of the meeting, please advise the writer immediately in writing. Otherwise, we will assume that it is accurate.

ATTACHMENTS

Attachment 1 - Stair Riser Schedule Attachment 2 – DC Historic Landmark Designation Attachment 3 – NRHP Nomination

ATTACHMENT 1

1700 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 100, Washington, DC 20006 T 202.842.2100

Project Name: DC Courts – Recorder of Deeds Modernization Proj. Number: – 14841.000

Existing Stair Riser Dimensions

The existing stair has a variance in its riser heights and the heights exceed code compliance. The code specifies that risers should not be more than 7 inches in height and not less than 4 inches when measured vertically between the nosing of the adjacent tread. Any variation of risers within a flight of stairs should not be more than 3/8 inch of tolerance. Stair flights with more than a 3/8 inch tolerance have been noted in red below. The design team is seeking guidance on if the existing stair can be retained with the varying riser heights and risers exceeding the 7” maximum code compliance.

Lower Level – First Floor Stair

Riser # Height

Lower Level Landing

LL-1 7-3/8”

LL-2 7-1/2”

LL-3 7-1/2”

LL-4 7-1/2”

LL-5 7-1/2”

LL-6 7-1/2”

Intermediate Landing

LL-7 7-5/8”

LL-8 7-1/2”

LL-9 7-1/2”

LL-10 7-1/2”

LL-11 7-1/2”

LL-12 7-1/2”

LL-13 7-1/2”

LL-14 7-3/8”

Intermediate Landing

LL-15 7-5/8”

LL-16 7-3/8”

LL-17 7-1/2”

LL-18 7-1/2”

LL-19 7-3/8”

LL-20 7-1/2”

LL-21 7-3/8”

First Floor Landing

First Floor – Second Floor Stair

First Floor Landing

1-1 7-1/2”

1-2 7-5/8”

1-3 7-5/8”

1-4 7-5/8”

1-5 7-5/8”

1-6 7-5/8”

1-7 7-1/2”

Intermediate Landing

1-8 7-3/4”

1-9 7-1/2”

1-10 7-5/8”

1-11 7-1/2”

1-12 7-5/8”

1-13 7-1/2”

1-14 7-1/2”

1-15 7-5/8”

Intermediate Landing

1-16 7-7/8”

1-17 7-5/8”

1-18 7-1/2”

1-19 7-5/8”

1-20 7-5/8”

1-21 7-5/8”

1-22 7-5/8”

1-23 7-3/4”

Second Floor Landing

ATTACHMENT 1

1700 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 100, Washington, DC 20006 T 202.842.2100

Second – Third Floor Stair

Second Floor Landing

2-1 7-5/8”

2-2 7-1/2”

2-3 7-1/2”

2-4 7-1/2”

2-5 7-5/8”

2-6 7-3/8”

Intermediate Landing

2-7 7-3/4”

2-8 7-5/8”

2-9 7-5/8”

2-10 7-5/8”

2-11 7-5/8”

2-12 7-1/2”

2-13 7-1/2”

2-14 7-1/2”

Intermediate Landing

2-15 7-3/4”

2-16 7-1/2”

2-17 7-3/8”

2-18 7-1/2”

2-19 7-3/8”

2-20 7-1/2”

Third Floor Landing

Third Floor– Penthouse Stair

Third Floor Landing

3-1 7-3/8”

3-2 7-1/2”

3-3 7-1/2”

3-4 7-5/8”

3-5 7-1/2”

3-6 7-3/8”

Intermediate Landing

3-7 7-3/4”

3-8 7-1/4”

3-9 7-1/2”

3-10 7-1/2”

3-11 7-1/2”

3-12 7-1/2”

3-13 7-1/2”

3-14 7-1/2”

Intermediate Landing

3-15 7-7/8”

3-16 7-1/4”

3-17 7-1/2”

3-18 7-1/2”

3-19 7-1/2”

3-20 7-1/2”

Penthouse Landing

NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Registration Form

This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register

Bulletin, How to Complete the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, and areas of significance, enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions.

1. Name of Property

Historic name: _District of Columbia Recorder of Deeds ___________

Other names/site number: ______________________________________

Name of related multiple property listing: N/A

(Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing

2. Location

Street & number: _515 D Street NW ________________________________________

City or town: _Washington, D.C.___________ State: __DC_____ County: ____________

Not For Publication: Vicinity:

3. State/Federal Agency Certification

As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this X nomination ___ request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic

Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60.

In my opinion, the property __X_ meets ___ does not meet the National Register Criteria.

I recommend that this property be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance:

___national ___statewide _X__local

Applicable National Register Criteria:

_X__A ___B _X__C ___D

Signature of certifying official/Title: Date

State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government

In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria.

Signature of commenting official: Date

Title : State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government

Attachment 2

National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form

District of Columbia Recorder of Deeds Washington, D.C.

Name of Property County and State

Sections 1-6 page 2

4. National Park Service Certification

I hereby certify that this property is:

entered in the National Register determined eligible for the National Register determined not eligible for the National Register removed from the National Register other (explain:) _____________________

Signature of the Keeper Date of Action

5. Classification

Ownership of Property

(Check as many boxes as apply.)

Private:

Public – Local

Public – State

Public – Federal

Category of Property

(Check only one box.)

Building(s)

District

Site

Structure

Object

X

Sections 1-6 page 3

Number of Resources within Property

(Do not include previously listed resources in the count)

Contributing Noncontributing

____1_________ _____________ buildings

_____________ _____________ sites

_____________ _____________ structures

_____________ _____________ objects

_____1________ ______________ Total

Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register ____0_____

6. Function or Use

Historic Functions

(Enter categories from instructions.)

GOVERNMENT/Government Office/Municipal Building________

Current Functions

(Enter categories from instructions.)

VACANT/Not in Use__________________

Section 7 page 4

7. Description

Architectural Classification

MODERN MOVEMENT/Art Moderne/Stripped Classical_____

Materials: (enter categories from instructions.)

Principal exterior materials of the property: _Limestone_______________________

Narrative Description

(Describe the historic and current physical appearance and condition of the property. Describe contributing and noncontributing resources if applicable. Begin with a summary paragraph that briefly describes the general characteristics of the property, such as its location, type, style, method of construction, setting, size, and significant features. Indicate whether the property has historic integrity.)

Summary Paragraph

Designed by the Office of the Municipal Architect under Nathan C. Wyeth, the Recorder of

Deeds building at 515 D Street NW was constructed in 1941-43. It was built as part of the city’s long-planned and only partially realized Municipal Center, a complex of city judicial and administrative buildings planned for Judiciary Square and the squares to its immediate south.1

Construction of the Recorder of Deeds building, along with the now-demolished Library Annex

(demolished in 1982 for construction of the Canadian Embassy), followed the 1941 completion of the Municipal Center Administrative building. Like the Municipal Center Administrative building that served as a stylistic model, the Recorder of Deeds building is a limestone-clad

Stripped Classical building with Art Moderne decorative features.

The building occupies almost the entirety of its city lot at the northeast intersection of 6th and D

Streets with sidewalks separating the building from the street. The three-story building fills its rectangular footprint up to the first-story level, but above that it is U-shaped with an open court at the north-center section of the building. Skylights on the roof of the first story provide natural light into the Recorder’s Liber Room on the interior. The building features smooth-cut limestone

1 For a comprehensive history of the planning and development of the Municipal Center see the District of Columbia

Municipal Center and Plaza National Register Nomination (2019).

Section 7 page 5 ashlar walls with metal windows and doors punched into the walls with minimal decorative detailing. The Classical Greek-inspired ornamentation is reserved for the door surrounds and building cornice. A full penthouse floor, deeply recessed from the cornice line, is not visible from street level. The principal elevation faces south to D Street and a secondary elevation faces west and extends north along 6th Street. The east side and north rear elevations are not readily visible from the public rights-of-way and are not architecturally articulated.

Aerial view looking north at Recorder of Deeds building (Peter Sefton, photographer, 2002)

While the exterior of the building presents a rather austere stripped classical style, the interior offers a warm travertine-paneled lobby along with an impressive array of richly painted wall murals and other art. Seven different murals, painted by seven different artists, were commissioned by the Treasury Department Section of Fine Art, to “reflect the contribution of the

Negro to the American nation.” These wall murals, covered for protection while the building sits vacant, are an integral and significant aspect of the building’s artistry and history. Despite being vacant, the building retains a high degree of integrity with no additions or alterations of consequence.

Site

The Recorder of Deeds building is located at the corner of 6th and D streets with its principal façade facing south. A wide concrete sidewalk runs along the south D Street façade of the building, while a narrower one, separated from the building by a grassy strip, extends along the

6th Street side elevation. The D Street sidewalk has several metal vaults close to the building’s façade, and a call box, light pole, signs, and street trees closer to the curbside. On the west, 6th

Street side, a grassy strip of land separates the sidewalk from a walled areaway that leads to the basement level of the building. On the north, the Recorder of Deeds building is separated from

Section 7 page 6 the adjacent building by a narrow passageway inaccessible to the public. On the east, a driveway which descends below grade with a retaining wall on the east separates the Recorder of Deeds building from another drive and the buildings on the opposite side of the drive. The Recorder of

Deeds driveway and retaining wall are included within the lot boundary of the property (Lot 802

Square 0489).

Exterior Description

The primary façade facing D Street is a smooth-cut limestone-clad ashlar wall surface divided vertically into nine bays and horizontally into three parts. The three-part horizontal division consists of a raised base, a double-story shaft, and a recessed rooftop penthouse above a cornice at the visible roofline. The base of the building features twin entrances located in either end bay with seven single metal windows evenly arranged between them and punched into the smooth limestone walls. The metal windows feature a single casement on-center with long sidelights to either side and three smaller divided lights above and below the central casement. The doors in either end bay are deeply recessed into the limestone wall and are framed by a stylized stone architrave. The architrave consists of ¾-engaged and reeded stone pilasters supporting a stone frieze carved with acanthus leaves. The side reveals have recessed limestone panels enclosing a small vestibule that leads to pairs of bronze doors with upper and lower glass panes.2 Both doors have granite sills with that on the east end being almost flush with the sidewalk and that on the south end raised slightly as the street level descends towards the west.

The building name, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA RECORDER OF DEEDS is incised into the limestone walls with simple lettering, above the windows of the building’s base and below a limestone beltcourse separating the base from the building’s upper stories (shaft) above. A corner stone naming the funding sources for the building, the members of the Board of Commissioners, the architect, and the date of construction (1941) of the building, is prominently located at the west end of the south façade, clearly visible to passing pedestrians.

The second and third stories, forming the building’s shaft, have single windows in each of the nine bays at both stories. The two end bays are wider than the other seven, and windows in the two bays are punched independently into the limestone wall surface, while the seven inside bays are vertically united by recessed spandrels between and below the window openings. The spandrel panels are black serpentine stone.3 This treatment of double-height recessed bays separated by limestone piers implies a Classical colonnade and is characteristic of the stripped classical style. Like those in the base, the windows in the shaft are metal with central casement openings. The two end windows of the second story, located above the first-story entrance doors, are framed by a narrowly recessed limestone surround giving these windows greater emphasis than the third story windows above. A limestone cornice carved with Classical Greek-inspired decorative leaves caps the roofline and continues around to the west elevation and one-bay deep on the east elevation.

2 Although the historic drawings identify the doors as aluminum, they appear to be bronze. The drawings also show etched aluminum transoms above the double doors which currently do not exist. The original aluminum doors and transoms were either replaced, or, more likely, never built as designed.

3 The 1941 elevation drawing notes “All Spandrels to be Black Serpentine.”

Section 7 page 7

The west elevation extends eight bays deep along 6th Street with each vertical bay identically arranged. At the base of the building, single metal casements, like those of the façade, are slightly recessed and punched into the walls. Above the limestone beltcourse, the second- and third-story windows are similarly recessed with spandrel panels between the windows with walls to either side, again giving the impression of a colonnade. The cornice of the D Street façade continues to wrap itself around this 6th Street elevation. At ground level, an areaway that provides access to the fireproof vault (storeroom) at basement level is separated from the grassy yard by a limestone wall rising approximately four feet above grade.

The east elevation, extending along a driveway, is less highly articulated than the opposing west elevation. The limestone cladding, the beltcourse, the cornice and the serpentine stone spandrels extend from the southeast corner of the building to just beyond the front bay, after which point the wall is clad with buff-colored brick rather than limestone. In addition, the windows are set individually in the wall surface and not arranged within the recessed vertical bays as on the south and west elevations, and the beltcourse and Greek cornice are not carried past the front bay. The metal windows, identical to those elsewhere on the building, feature a central casement and surrounding fixed lights.

The north rear elevation consists of the end walls of the wings forming the U-shaped building and the north end wall of the interior court elevation, all clad in brick. The east and west wing end walls practically abut the building just north of the Recorder of Deeds building and are thus not visible. The north court elevation, as well as the east and west court elevations are visible from the interior of the building at the upper levels. The walls are buff brick and the metal sash with central casements as elsewhere are punched into the brick walls with stone sills.

The penthouse level, set well back from the cornice line above the second story, is not visible, though historic drawings indicate that it is clad in brick. The south elevation has two doors towards either end, while the west elevation has metal casements as elsewhere on the building.

Interior Description

The interior of the Recorder of Deeds is reached by either of the twin entrances at the east or west ends of the D Street façade. Both entrances have pairs of fully glazed bronze doors on the exterior that open into small vestibules with another pair of glazed bronze doors giving access to larger vestibules. Both vestibules have vertical vein travertine-clad walls and pinkish-hued terrazzo floors with black terrazzo borders. From these vestibules, metal stairs with metal railings lead up to the main lobby. The lobby, clad with a similar vertical vein travertine, spans the south front of the building from east to west and provides access to enclosed staircases

(leading down to the storage vault and up to offices), elevator bank, cashier room, delivery room, foyer, and other secondary spaces at the core of the first floor. The liber room, which fills the entire north end of the building from east to west, is reached through the foyer from the lobby.

The lobby, bathed in natural light coming from the seven windows lining the south wall of the room, is a richly detailed space with its travertine walls, terrazzo floor and a coffered plaster ceiling. The travertine walls are laid in large panels and are striated with vertical veins of color ranging from pink to light and darker brown. Around the openings leading to the above-noted

Section 7 page 8 spaces, the travertine walls are incised with vertical reeding. A narrow stringcourse caps the height of the openings, but extends around the room, allowing the marble walls above to act as an implied frieze. A series of inset aluminum panels with stylized floral bas relief motifs decorate this frieze level, while the coffered ceiling rises above. The beams forming the recessed coffers are decorated with incised reeding matching that found in the marble walls, and visually recalling a classical cornice with alternating metopes and triglyphs. Original signage appears above the doors identifying the Cashier Room, the Liber Room, the Stairs, Elevators and

Telephone room. Original light fixtures with fluorescent tube lights are mounted to the ceiling.

The windows along the south wall of the lobby are deeply recessed from the travertine wall surface, but with travertine side walls and sills. The terrazzo floor has a multi-faceted pinkish hue with a black border around the edges. Openings along the north wall of the lobby lead to the former cashier’s office, stair well, foyer-then-lobby, elevators, and passage to delivery room. A metal bas relief sculpture of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, sculpted by Selma Burke for the

Recorder of Deeds building and discussed in Section 8 of this nomination, is built into the lobby’s north wall, immediately to the left of the entrance to the stairs, and to the right of the passageway leading to the cashier’s room.

Three broad openings, on-center of the lobby’s north wall and separated by travertine-clad piers lead to the travertine-clad foyer and then into the liber room. The walls of the foyer decorated with four of the seven wall murals that were commissioned for the space. These murals are currently encased in protective coverings for conservation as the building is vacant and is unconditioned. The murals, commissioned by the Treasury Department Section of Fine Art and placed in the building in 1943, are set into recessed plaster beds designed and built for the murals.

Photo of foyer from lobby showing murals before being covered (Peter Sefton, photographer, 2002)

Section 7 page 9

The liber room, historically accommodating shelves of deed books, no longer holds the books, though the movable wooden shelves are still intact. The room fills the entire north end of the building with windows on the east and west end walls, no windows on the north wall, and laylights in the ceiling above. The liber room floor is covered with vinyl tiles over a concrete slab.

The second floor of the Recorder of Deeds, U-shaped in plan with an open court over the liber room, includes the Office of the Recorder, the library and other private offices. The second floor is reached by either the stairs or elevators. The quarter-turn metal stairs ascend and descend all levels of the building and include metal railings with plain metal balusters, newel, and metal handrails; the metal steps are capped with black terrazzo treads. The partition walls in the second floor are metal, painted to look like wood.

The Recorder’s office is located in the southwest corner and the library is in the northwest corner of the second floor. Corridors run along the U-shaped floor plan providing access to and between offices, the stairs and elevators and bathroom facilities. In the east and west wings, the corridors are double loaded with offices on either side. Those offices on the outside wall have windows to the street, while those on the inside wall have windows into the open court.

The Recorder’s Office has windows on the south and west sides and doors on the north and east sides leading to private offices and the corridor. The faux wood metal walls of the Recorder’s

Office include a chair rail and coved crown molding with corbelled bed molding surrounding the room, and oak floors laid in a tapestry pattern. The ceiling is finished with plaster. A painting depicting the groundbreaking ceremony of 1943 and known as “Groundbreaking Day” hung on the north interior partition wall of the Recorder’s Office until the building was vacated.

Photo of Recorder of Deed’s office showing “Groundbreaking Day” painting (Peter Sefton, photographer, 2002)

Section 7 page 10

The library, larger than the Recorder’s Office, occupies the entire north end of the west wing.

The west wing corridor leads past offices and then directly into the room. The room has windows on its west wall looking onto D Street and windows on the east wall looking into the court and the laylights covering the liber room. A fireplace with a stone surround and stone hearth is located on-center of the north wall, opposite the entrance door. The library walls consist of metal partitions with oak veneer as elsewhere, and the concrete floors are covered with non-original vinyl tiles. Built-in bookshelves flank the fireplace, above which sits the seventh mural, covered for conservation purposes. Part of the ceiling is plaster and the other part is dropped acoustical tile.

Photo of library before mural was covered and building was vacated (Peter Sefton, photographer, 2002)

All of the walls in the upper floor offices and corridors have fireproof metal partitions with those in the offices finished with a wood veneer giving the impression that they are wood and those in corridors largely painted white. The corridors have ceramic water fountains recessed into the metal walls, terrazzo flooring, and dropped acoustical tile ceilings. Doors leading between offices, or between the corridor and offices are all metal. The restrooms are intact with terrazzo floors and marble stall dividers.

The third floor has a similar arrangement of offices on either side of the U-shaped corridor with the service facilities at the core of the building. The third floor housed the index room and title rooms, and offices for copyists and other clerical staff. The penthouse level historically housed a cafeteria and kitchen, in addition to machine rooms and other facility rooms.

Section 7 page 11

The building also includes a basement, intended to hold original deeds in a fireproof storage area.

INTEGRITY

The Recorder of Deeds building has high integrity. It is at its original location at the corner of 6th and D Streets NW in the Judiciary Square area and stylistically related to the Municipal Center building. The setting, though a changing urban landscape, retains much of its historic character, including most notably, the early 19th-century City Hall (now DC Court) designed by George

Hadfield and forming the southern end of Judiciary Square proper. Two 19th-century residential buildings are located immediately east of the Recorder of Deeds building, remnants illustrating the historic, mixed-use residential and governmental aspect of the square. The building retains integrity of design, materials and workmanship with original materials intact on both the exterior and interior. The building, which served as the Office of the Recorder of Deeds from its completion in 1943 until 2008, is currently vacant, but with the building name incised on the exterior, and its public art on the interior, commissioned specifically for the building, the building retains a high degree of feeling and association.

Section 8 page 12

8. Statement of Significance

Applicable National Register Criteria

(Mark "x" in one or more boxes for the criteria qualifying the property for National Register listing.)

A. Property is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history.

B. Property is associated with the lives of persons significant in our past.

C. Property embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components lack individual distinction.

D. Property has yielded, or is likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history.

Criteria Considerations

(Mark “x” in all the boxes that apply.)

A. Owned by a religious institution or used for religious purposes

B. Removed from its original location

C. A birthplace or grave

D. A cemetery

E. A reconstructed building, object, or structure

F. A commemorative property

G. Less than 50 years old or achieving significance within the past 50 years

Section 8 page 13

Areas of Significance

ARCHITECTURE __________________

POLITICS/GOVERNMENT__________

ETHNIC HERITAGE/Black___________

Period of Significance

1943-1945__________

Significant Dates

_1943; 1945________

Significant Person

(Complete only if Criterion B is marked above.)

Cultural Affiliation

Architect/Builder

Nathan Wyeth, Municipal Architect__________________

Section 8 page 14

Statement of Significance Summary Paragraph (Provide a summary paragraph that includes level of significance, applicable criteria, justification for the period of significance, and any applicable criteria considerations.)

The Recorder of Deeds building, constructed 1941-43, is the first and only purpose-built building to house the city’s Office of the Recorder of Deeds. The position of Recorder of Deeds dates to

1863 when Congress created it, but was formalized in 1869, when Congress detailed the functions of the position and instituted a fee system to support a recorder’s office and staff. As stipulated by Congress, the position of the Recorder of Deeds was to be appointed by the president and subject to Senate confirmation in the manner of a cabinet-level appointment.

For decades, the recorder’s office occupied rooms in the Old City Hall building and nearby rented space. From the outset, recorders lobbied for a consolidated and fireproof space—a plea that finally succeeded in 1940, when President Franklin Roosevelt signed a bill allowing the

District to receive a Public Works Administration loan to fund a recorder’s building. Two months later, the president attended a ground-breaking ceremony, though designs for the building were not completed until early 1941 and construction was not completed until 1943 due to World War II budget and material shortages.

Designed by the Municipal Architect’s Office under Nathan C. Wyeth, the Recorder of Deeds building was constructed as part of the city’s long-planned and only partially realized “Municipal

Center,” a complex of city judicial and administrative buildings planned for Judiciary Square and the squares to its immediate south. As constructed, the limestone-clad building reflected a stripped classical style consistent with the other buildings making up the Municipal Center.

As stipulated by Congress, the position of Recorder of Deeds was a presidential appointment. In

1881 President James Garfield appointed Frederick Douglass to the position of Recorder of

Deeds, the first African American to hold the position. Douglass was succeeded by James C.

Matthews, an African American lawyer and New York Democrat. The appointments of Douglass and Matthews thus established a tradition whereby the president appointed African Americans to the prestigious and highly remunerated position.

As constructed, the Recorder of Deeds building includes an important public art program that commemorates African American history. Seven murals painted by seven different artists commissioned by the Treasury Department Section of Fine Art depict historical events in which

African Americans played critical and heroic roles. Two of the seven murals, “Frederick

Douglass Imploring President Lincoln” and “Benjamin Banneker and the District of Columbia” are specifically associated with the District, while the others depict African Americans in national patriotic struggles outside the District.

In addition to the murals, the building includes a bronze plaque, “The Four Freedoms,” with a relief depicting President Roosevelt in profile. The plaque, sculpted by African American sculptor Dr. Selma Burke, was commissioned for the building before Roosevelt’s death and dedicated in 1945, after his death.

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The Recorder of Deeds Building meets National Register Criteria A and C at the local level of significance. The building meets Criterion A with Politics/Government and Ethnic

Heritage/Black as the Areas of Significance for its association with the appointments of African

Americans to the position of Recorder. The position is a symbol of national achievement of

African Americans, while it simultaneously represents the African American struggle for equal rights. Similarly, the building’s art program, which is integral to the building, celebrates this achievement and the contributions of African Americans to the nation.

The Recorder of Deeds building meets National Register Criterion C with Architecture as the

Area of Significance as the building embodies the distinguishing characteristics of Art Moderne

Stripped Classical style and is an expression of urban planning and design. Namely, the building was built as part of the Municipal Center and designed in a style complementary to the other buildings making up the complex. The inclusion of the Recorder of Deeds building within the complex represents the recognized importance of the Office to the development of the city.

The building further meets Criterion C because its interior wall murals possess high artistic value and are notable works of recognized artists associated with the New Deal-era public arts programs. In addition to their merits as individual works, the murals represent a significant and distinguishable entity as a thematic group. The art program includes the sculptural relief “Four

Freedoms” by the distinguished African American artist Selma Burke.

The Period of Significance for the Recorder of Deeds extends from 1943 when the building was completed to 1945 when the “The Four Freedoms” plaque was dedicated for the interior.

Narrative Statement of Significance (Provide at least one paragraph for each area of significance.)

The Office of the Recorder of Deeds as a Social and Political Symbol

With the partial exception of the Reconstruction era, a system of racial discrimination and segregation restricted the appointment of African Americans to federal, state, and municipal positions until after World War II. Beginning with Republican President James Garfield’s appointment of Frederick Douglass in 1881, however, the Recorder of Deeds of the District of

Columbia became one of only a handful of federally appointed positions open to African

Americans. For decades, this made the Office of the Recorder of Deeds the focal point of political, racial, and social conflict, as well as a national symbol of African American accomplishment. Before the Civil War, recording and maintaining land deeds and other legal documents was among the miscellaneous duties assigned to municipal clerks. However, the wartime boom generated a large volume of property subdivisions and sales. In 1863, Congress formalized the District’s recordkeeping by creating the position of Recorder, with responsibility for registering, certifying, and filing all deeds, mortgages, conveyances, quit claims, powers of attorney, leases, trusts, incorporations, contracts, covenants, agreements, and similar documents.4

In 1869 to resolve lingering questions about the recorder’s authority to issue titles to property, 4 “Real Estate Changes,” Washington Post, November 11, 1889, 7.

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Congress further formalized the functions of the position, and also instituted a fee system to fully support a recorder’s office and staff.

Although many states, counties, and municipalities instituted offices with similar functions, the

District of Columbia’s position of Recorder of Deeds was unique. Congress made the position a presidential appointment, subject to Senate confirmation in the manner of a cabinet officer or ambassador. Even after the Civil Service reforms of the 1880s, nominations to the recorder position remained a reward for political services rendered elsewhere. Nominees often lacked connections to the District and its residents that the office served. Indeed, the recorder position was a patronage plum, highly lucrative and highly coveted. In addition to fees for certification and other services, the office hand copied even the longest deeds into record books called

“liebers.” Customers were charged by the word, with one-third of the fee going to the copyist and two-thirds to the office. The recorder used the proceeds to pay office expenses and staff salaries and kept the remainder as personal compensation. After his term, Frederick Douglass noted that commercial activity increased so much that the Recorder of Deeds had become the most highly compensated government official after the President.5

Douglass, the first African American recorder, was not the first African American to work in the office. His predecessor, General George A. Sheridan of Louisiana, had hired copyist Henrietta

Vinton Davis (1860-1941) as the office’s first African American employee in 1878.6 Three years later, Douglass was named Recorder in 1881 and held the position through the administration of

Chester Alan Arthur, who became president upon Garfield’s assassination, and into the first year of Cleveland’s presidency. However, on January 5, 1886, Douglass submitted a letter of resignation to make way for James C. Matthews, an African American lawyer and active

Democrat from Cleveland’s home state of New York.

Matthews’ nomination ignited a firestorm of criticism and Douglass continued acting as recorder while a bitter political battle ensued. Cleveland bluntly informed senators that he had nominated

Matthews because he “desired in this way to tender just recognition and good faith toward our colored fellow citizens.”7 Some of Matthews’ critics argued that the office should be reserved for a city resident, most particularly long-time Deputy Recorder Colonel George F. Schayer who was white. Hostility extended to Douglass as well, though he was a D.C. resident and had achieved national stature and had been called “the most distinguished representative of the colored race not in this country only, but in the world,” by Republican Senator John Ingalls of

Kansas.8

5 Frederick Douglass, The Life and Times of Frederick Douglass (Mineola, NY: Courier Dover Press, 1892;

reprinted (2003), 387.

6 “Real Estate Changes,” Washington Post, Although Douglass had served as Chief United States Marshall under

Hayes, Garfield wished to appoint a boyhood friend and home state political supporter to that position. Douglass agreed to accept the recorder position with what he later felt was the implied but ultimately unkept promise of a future ambassadorship. Garfield’s brief presidency was distinguished by his efforts to appoint prominent African

Americans to national office, including John M. Langston as minister to Haiti and former senator and future

Recorder of Deeds Blanche K. Bruce as register to the United States Treasury.

7 “Matthews Rejection,” Washington Post, February 8, 1886, 1.

8 Ibid.

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The news columns of the Washington Post quoted unnamed lawyers’ praise of Schayer as “the man who did all the work” while “Fred Douglass did nothing but pocket the fees.” The March 7, 1886 issue of the Washington Post fired a double-barreled barrage against Douglass and

Matthews, reprinting a Chicago News article headlined “Fred Douglass Calls Himself a

Caucasian,” and publishing an editorial piece protesting Cleveland’s nomination of a “non-

District man.” Clearly, the objection had more to do with his race than his residency:

It will not be pretended that Mr. Matthews’ race and color is, either in the nature of things or in fact, agreeable to the great majority of citizens, or that they would choose such a man for the semi-personal intercourse of an important position.

The president should have no difficulty finding the right man. He should not be a colored man. Even the president will hardly claim that there is a natural connection between the negro [sic] race and the Recordership of Deeds. As we have already said, he should be a white man and a man of affairs- one in whom our citizens can have confidence and with whom they can associate on pleasant terms.

Cleveland, who was famously iron-willed, did not concede, even to members of his own party.

After seven months of struggle, Matthews took control of the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, and Schayer’s resignation was sought and accepted within days.9

The Douglass-Matthews affair defined the Recorder position in ways that endured for decades.

First, it established an unwritten tradition that the position would be reserved for an African

American, regardless of which party was in power. Second, it reinforced the principle that the recorder would be appointed by politicians at the national level, and that the wishes of local citizens, regardless of their motivations, were not the major consideration. The dispute also first conflated demands that the recorder be a District resident and a white male, and presented the belief that existing bigotry created its own justification for continuing discrimination against

African American nominees. The appointments of Matthews’ successors evoked less controversy, and the Post even belatedly congratulated Matthews as well as his successor, former

Senator Blanche K. Bruce, for efficiency in office.10 McKinley appointee Henry Plummer

Cheatham, a former slave and one-time congressman from North Carolina, modernized the operations of the office and likewise received commendations as an efficient recorder.

Still, the Post persisted in its discriminatory tone. It greeted Theodore Roosevelt’s 1904 nomination of John Dancey with an editorial even more virulent than that which had greeted

James Mathews fifteen years earlier. It opened by stating, “in our opinion, the negro [sic] is not fit for authority or serious responsibility,” and then disparaged Cheatham in explicitly racist terms:

9 “In Their New Offices,” Washington Post, August 11, 1886, 2.

10 “Recordership of Deeds,” Washington Post, April 3, 1894, 4.

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We are free to admit that Mr. Cheatham is one of the superior specimens of his race. He is perhaps better educated than the average white man. He is certainly endowed with good manners and an attractive presence. But this is not to say that he makes a satisfactory recorder of deeds or that he presents an alluring presence over white employees of both sexes…His office is the arena of all sorts of jealousies and feuds. The negro [sic] has not the facility of command.

To import into a local office of this character a stranger of any color or condition is bad enough. To import a negro [sic] is oppressive and distasteful. But worst of all is the proposition that this or any other office under government belongs by right and must be given to a negro [sic].

In addition to the persistent themes of the incumbent’s race and residency, the Dancey controversy revealed that the composition of the recorder’s office workforce was another source of tension. An 1889 informal census had shown that 14 employees were women and 6 men, while 11 employees were white and 9 African American.11 Apparently, an African American man supervising white employees, especially if those employees included women, aroused alarm and resentment in some circles.

After the Democrats won control of the White House in 1912, the recorder position again became the subject of a prolonged racial controversy, reflecting the tensions that culminated in the Washington riots of 1919. In 1913-14, the “National Democratic Fair Play Association of

Washington,” composed of “prominent local Democrats,” conducted mass meetings lobbying members of congress to confirm only whites for local office.12 After the recorder position had remained vacant for nearly three years, President Woodrow Wilson nominated John F. Costello, a white District native who was also the city’s National Democratic Committeeman, reportedly because a plank in the Democratic platform called for home rule.13 Costello, the first white recorder since before Frederick Douglass’ appointment in 1881, served from 1916 until 1922, when Republican Warren G. Harding replaced him with African-American lawyer Arthur Froe.14

Well into the twentieth century, the Recorder of Deeds position and these appointment struggles attracted widespread attention in the African American community nationwide. At one mass meeting during the McKinley era, a resolution was passed stating that “the fact that every ambitious colored man in the country aspired to the position of Recorder of Deeds was to be deplored,” as this illuminated the limited public roles open to African-Americans.15 The selection

11 “Real Estate Changes,” 7.

12 Race Issues Discussed – Speakers at Big Mass Meeting Want White Men in Office; Decry Colored Appointees,”

Washington Post, July 1, 1913, 3 and “White Man in Office – District Democrats Renew Fight for Recorder of

Deeds,” Washington Post, January 26, 1914. 12. A number of southern congressmen attended these meetings and support was said to be offered by Senator Vardaman of Mississippi.

13 “Costello As Recorder,” Washington Post, June 9, 1916, 12. Henry Johnson, his predecessor resigned on June 30, 1913.

14 “Arthur Froe, Colored Lawyer, Takes Oath of Office,” Washington Post, March 2, 1922, 4.

15 “Colored Citizens Protest,” Washington Post, March 26, 1897, 3.

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Chicago Defender.

Advocating for a Recorder of Deeds Building:

From its earliest days, the recorder’s office occupied rooms in the old City Hall at Judiciary

Square and nearby rented space. During Douglass’ tenure, the recorder’s office had…