Carver

Carver Langston. A neighborhood whispered to be two but truly one. Here, on the western bank of the Anacostia River, Carver and Langston nestle together, forming a square of land just south of the U.S. National Arboretum. Carver, the smaller of the two, lies to the north. Bladensburg Road marks its western edge, M Street NE its northern border, and Maryland Avenue its southeastern boundary. Langston stretches below, bordered by Maryland Avenue to the northwest, 22nd and 26th Streets NE to the east, and Benning Road to the south. Carver Langston, a middle-income community, welcomes retirees, families, young professionals, and renters. A wave of gentrification is sweeping over the western and southern edges of Carver Langston. The neighborhood’s commercial heart beats at Hechinger Mall, though its namesake store has been silent since the late 1990s. Carver Langston carries the names of two impactful figures. George Washington Carver, the renowned black inventor, lends his name to the northern neighborhood. John Mercer Langston, the first black American from Virginia to serve in the U.S. Congress, gives his name to Langston Terrace. This area boasts the city’s first federally funded public housing program, established in 1938. Built during a time of segregation, Langston Terrace was designed specifically for African American residents. Just east of Carver Langston, at the river’s edge, lies the historic Langston Golf Course. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it was the first golf course in the United States to open its greens to black players. Among its frequent visitors was boxing champion Joe Louis.