Originally published in the April 2025 edition of Greet Del Ray.

Del Ray was created as a residential community, and many of the buildings constructed next to Mt. Vernon Ave. were single family homes. Over the years, most of these have been converted to businesses, such as the Del Ray Pizzeria building (see the February 2025 issue of Greet Del Ray). One such conversion is at 1913 Mt. Vernon Ave.

These lots at the corner of Mt. Vernon and Howell Aves. were originally purchased in 1894 by the Alexandria newspaper publisher Alexander Doniphan for his suburban home. The house was constructed as a folk Victorian with a porch wrapping around both the Howell and Mt. Vernon sides. The design was a common one seen around the Washington suburbs in the late 1890s and early 1900s. The original address of 101 E. Howell Ave. was changed to 201 with the 1940 renumbering throughout Del Ray. After a decade of living in Del Ray, Doniphan moved back to Old Town and sold the house to Stephan Feagan, an insurance salesman. Stephen gave the house to his son Ernest when he married in 1914, and Ernest’s wife lived there until 1960, long after Ernest passed away.

After the Feagan family sold the house, it remained vacant for several years until the Eastern Drag Newspaper converted it to their offices in 1964, changing the address to 1913 Mt. Vernon Ave. in the process. It changed hands two years later and became the offices of the building maintenance firm E & R Corporation, which remained there until 1975. Del Ray had fallen on rough times in the 1970s and 1980s. After 1975, this building was largely vacant until Ashton Decorative Hardware occupied it throughout the 2000s. In 2010, after Ashton’s closure, Bellies & Babies occupied the building for the next 15 years. When Lee Raynes, the current owner of Bellies & Babies, decided to retire, the building came available again. Jay Portlance, the owner of the Del Ray Hardware Store, has now obtained a lease and is creating the Del Ray Farmhouse Market & Garden store to provide the community with a new garden center. This property will remain commercial for the foreseeable future.