Interior photo of Industrial Savings Bank upon its re-opening in 1934.

ID: 3863 ~ Source: Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
This file appears in: Civil Rights Tour: Housing - Industrial Bank of Washington
Interior photo of Industrial Savings Bank upon its re-opening in 1934.
This file appears in: Civil Rights Tour: Housing - Industrial Bank of Washington

In 1913 laborer and entrepreneur John Whitelaw Lewis founded the Industrial Savings Bank at 11th and U streets NW, opening up financial opportunities for African Americans.  When it opened, Industrial Bank (designed by Black architect Isaah T.…