Suzanne's HousesWithCharacter post on the Bloomingdale Inn (now on the market)

See this post from the HouseWithCharacter.com blog of Suzanne Des Marais, Bloomingdale resident and  Associate Broker with 10 Square Team at Keller Williams Capital Properties

New Listing & Some History: The Bloomingdale Inn

Posted on December 1, 2012 by 10square

              

We`re pleased to present Suzanne`s new listing at 2415 and 2417 1st St NW, also known as The Bloomingdale Inn.  This is a particularly unique property, as the two properties have existed connected to one another for many years.  Either property is available for sale or they may be purchased together.  Pricing for 2417 1st St NW is $650,000., and 2415 1st is being offered at $615,000.  There are a total of ten bedrooms between the two properties.  Please contact us for additional details.

  

The current owner, Lorraine Wilson, has provided a brief history of the Inn:

   

The two properties were donated to the Catholic Church in the 1940′s or earlier. My understanding is that while the Catholic Church refused to allow African-Americans to attend Catholic University, there were many catholic students at HBCUs. So the church opened Newman Student Centers. Our property was the Howard University Newman Center until we bought it from the Catholic Church.

     

When we purchased it, it was still being run as a student center and a priest was in residence. The 2415 side on the first floor was the chapel. The step-up in The Samuel Gompers Room was where the communion rail was and services were held on the entire first floor of 2415.

   

Since we have operated it as a B&B, we named each room after historically important people that lived in Bloomingdale.

  

We ran a naming contest in the Bloomingdale Listserv to name the last room we converted. A neighbor informed us that Chita Rivera lived in Bloomingdale until she was about nine years old. One of our innkeepers tracked her down at a performance in VA, took her a dozen roses and confirmed that she did grow up in Bloomingdale. Chita Rivera even signed a photo for us, (unfortunately, that same innkeeper stole the signed photo when he left.)

       

Because of the proximity to several hospitals, we often have guests who are in DC for medical treatment. This may be too much information, but whenever possible, we have placed patients awaiting treatment in The Samuel Gompers Room and we`ve had an amazing track record of positive outcomes and recoveries. Probably a testament to the great doctors up at the center, but you never know. The room has an amazing peaceful feeling.