Twelfth Street YMCA Building
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Twelfth Street YMCA Building
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| Location | 1816 12th St. NW, Washington, D.C. |
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| Coordinates | 38°54′53.8″N 77°01′41.8″W / 38.914944°N 77.028278°WCoordinates: 38°54′53.8″N 77°01′41.8″W / 38.914944°N 77.028278°W |
| Area | .395 acres (1,600 m2) |
| Built | 1908-12 |
| Architect | William Sidney Pittman |
| Architectural style | Renaissance Revival |
| Part of | Greater U Street Historic District (#93001129) |
| NRHP reference # | 83003523 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 3, 1983 |
| Designated NHL | October 12, 1994 |
Twelfth Street YMCA Building, also known as the Anthony Bowen YMCA, was home to the first African American chapter of the YMCA, founded in 1853 by Anthony Bowen. It is located at 1816 12th Street NW in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The building was reopened on February 20, 2000 as the Thurgood Marshall Center in honor of the first African American Associate Justice to serve on the United States Supreme Court. The Thurgood Marshall Center now serves as a community center for residents of the U Street Corridor and Shaw neighborhoods. The permanent organization of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. was established in the Bowen Room.
Completed in 1912, the Renaissance Revival building was designed by William Sidney Pittman, one of the United States' first African American architects and a son-in-law of Booker T. Washington. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1994 and is a contributing property to the Greater U Street Historic District.
The Thurgood Marshall Center is located on the west side of 12th Street NW, between S and T Streets. It is a large rectangular four-story masonry building, built out of red brick with trim of limestone and gray brick. Its main facade is three bays wide, with a center entrance sheltered by a Tuscan portico with entablature, modillioned cornice, and low balustrade above. The ground floor is finished in bands of gray brick arranged to appear as rough stone, while the upper floors are red brick with gray brick corner quoining. Limestone stringcourses serve as a water table between the basement and first floor, between the first and second floors, and above the top floor. The building is crowned by a modillioned and dentillated cornice and a low balustrade. Windows are set in pairs in each bay, with limestone keystones.
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