The Carter G. Woodson home is a three-story brick row house on Ninth Street with a bright red front door. Between nineteen fifteen and nineteen fifty, Woodson operated the Association for the Study of African American Life and History from…
U Street Black Broadway
This self-guided walk leads you through the heart of D.C.'s historic Black cultural renaissance, highlighting legendary jazz venues, civil rights landmarks, and community institutions that defined Black Broadway.
Listen to this tour in the Mira app →
1. Carter G. Woodson National Historic Site
2. The Howard Theatre
The Howard Theatre stands out with its ornate Beaux-Arts facade and the glowing, marquee-style sign that stretches across the entrance. When it opened in nineteen ten, it offered a stage for Black performers who were barred from most…
3. African American Civil War Museum
The African American Civil War Museum occupies a building with a brightly colored, geometric mural covering the entire front facade. It honors the more than two hundred thousand United States Colored Troops who fought for the Union. In…
4. Bohemian Caverns
The jagged, faux-stalactite ceiling hanging over the basement stage at eleventh and U Street identifies the Bohemian Caverns. It opened in nineteen twenty-six as the Crystal Caverns, designed to mimic a subterranean cave system. Duke…
5. Industrial Bank
The Industrial Bank building features a sharp, limestone-clad corner that cuts into the intersection like the prow of a ship. Jesse Mitchell opened this bank in nineteen thirty-four, during the deepest part of the Great Depression,…
6. True Reformer Building
The True Reformer Building stands out for its curved corner facade of dark red brick and limestone, a design that anchored a bustling hub of Black professional life in the early twentieth century. It was commissioned by the Grand United…
7. Ben's Chili Bowl
The red and yellow awning stretching across the storefront marks Ben's Chili Bowl on U Street. Ben and Virginia Ali opened the shop in nineteen fifty-eight, serving chili dogs to police officers, bus drivers, and local families. During the…
8. Lincoln Theatre
The Lincoln Theatre features a cream-colored terra cotta facade topped by a distinct, oversized marquee that stretches across the sidewalk. When it opened in nineteen twenty-two, it served as the cultural heartbeat for Washington’s Black…
9. Whitelaw Apartments
The Whitelaw Apartments occupy a sturdy brick structure in Logan Circle, distinguished by a cream-colored terra cotta facade that stands out against its neighbors. In nineteen nineteen, John Whitelaw Lewis built this place as a hotel for…