With These Hands NW corner of 48th Street & Sheriff Road NE
Up the hill on 48th street are several of Deanwood’s signature handcrafted houses. Beginning in the late 1800s, Deanwood attracted skilled black migrants, who freely passed on their know-how. In the 1920s Jacob and Randolph Dodd built about 50 structures in Deanwood, including numbers 906, 910, 920, 925, 926, 928, and 929 48th Street. They often built to designs of Lewis W. Giles, Sr. To save money, the Dodds installed windows only in the front and back of the houses. Owners sometimes cut side windows later. Louis Jasper Logan worked as a brick mason and general contractor in DC, building homes for his family at 4905 Meade Street and 1000 48th Place. According to the family, Logan arrived from North Carolina in the 1920s with training from North Carolina A&T, “a peanut crop, and $100 in his pocket.” Logan parlayed these into success, “led a humble life, yet died a millionaire” known for his generosity. Edward L. Wright of 47th Place, another self- sufficient craftsman, built Deanwood’s first television set, and trained others to make TVs and broadcast and citizen band radios. Andrew Turner’s mechanical aptitude led him to become a Tuskegee Airman during World War II. Neigh- bors still remember the day he made a detour to fly over the neighborhood. The walk along Sheriff Road to Sign 9 passes unevenly placed houses. Road grading that took place years after the houses were built left some far below or above street level.
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