Hold the Mayo! 5756 georgia avenue nw
english, irish, and german settlers, as well as enslaved and free African Americans, were the first non-natives to claim Brightwood. Farmers dominated until after the Civil War. Then in the 1890s electric streetcars allowed government workers to live here and ride to jobs downtown. By the 1940s, sons and daughters of Jewish, Greek, and Italian immigrants had arrived, often from older city neighborhoods. Abraham Posin, founder of Posin’s Deli and Bakery, was typical of the newcomers. His family had immigrated from Russia around 1910. Young Abraham visited an uncle living in Washington, where he met and married Gertrude Rose, another Russian émigré. The couple opened a store in Foggy Bottom, later moving to the Arcade Market in Columbia Heights and then in 1947 to 5756 Georgia Avenue. Abe’s sons, World War II veterans Max and Hyman, eventually took over the store. Although most of his Jewish customers moved on in the 1950s, Max stayed to serve the African Americans and Caribbean immigrants who took their places. He died in 1995, and his son Randy closed the store three years later. The firehouse just beyond Posin’s is here because, back in 1891, residents formed the Brightwood Citizens’ Association and lobbied for city-style improvements. In addition to the firehouse, they secured sewers, sidewalks, streets, electric and gas service, and an elementary school. The church at 5714 Georgia became the home of Canaan Baptist Church in 1956, but it soon outgrew the space and moved to 16th Street in Mount Pleasant.
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