John F. Donohoe Comes to Washington 1863-1883

The history of the Donohoe Companies is a long and varied one. Many times the chronicle of a company is full of twists and turns, especially a company that is 125 years old. However, in the case of Donohoe, the founding, upward growth, and outward expansion, are obviously the result of a steady, studied, and methodical approach, to seeing opportunity and seizing it.

John F. Donohoe was born December 23, 1839, in Albany, New York. His parents, Patrick and Mary, were both born in County Kerry, Ireland. It appears that John’s parents were imbued with the same grasp of opportunity, in that they immigrated to America well before the Potato Famine of 1845. Perhaps we could simply attribute it to Irish luck. In any event, John received a good education, learned to work hard, and value the benefits of having devote parents and close sibling ties.

In 1858, John’s parents and his three younger brothers relocated to Washington, D.C. John’s father was employed as a messenger for the U.S. Capitol extension project. His three brothers were employed in other jobs in the city.

We are not certain why John did not join them at first, but know that by 1863, he was in Washington as well. City records show that he established a grocery business on the ground floor of his parents’ home.

It was not enough that John F. Donohoe was selling groceries and other sundries to the public, there was also another sales opportunity. There was still an army to feed. During the Civil War, there were salesmen and purveyors of provisions who followed the troops, or sold from an established location under a token payment system. These Sutlers, as they were known, sold everything from canned peaches, coffee and flour, to tinware, stationery, and blister ointment for over-marched feet.

Washington was a beehive of military and government activity from 1861 to 1865. Infantry regiments camped about the suburbs, cavalry squadrons patrolled the streets, and countless artillery batteries bristled inside the many fortifications that ringed the city. John most certainly participated in this Sutlery business. Rumor has it that he experienced the excitement and danger associated with skirmishes along the Potomac River while plying his trade with the army.

After the war ended, there were several changes in the running of the grocery business. In 1865, John formed a partnership with his brothers Daniel and James Donohoe. It was named, Donohoe Brothers Groceries and Liquors. They sold to the general public, but were also employed as Sutlers for the 5th United States Cavalry, stationed nearby. This partnership with his brothers was not a long one, and by the end of 1866, John was back to running the store himself. At that time the store was still operating out of the ground floor of his parents’ home.

In October of 1875, John was married to Emily Jenkins. The couple would eventually have four sons and a daughter. John moved his business to another location, with more room to carry on in the trade with his wife and growing family. This building still survives at 1001 North Carolina Avenue, NE, at the southwest corner of Lincoln Park, on Capital Hill. The exterior appears much as it would have when John Donohoe ran his store there. It houses a dry cleaning business today.

John continued in the grocery business until 1884.