Hopkins House was born of necessity. In 1939, at the end of the
Depression with a still weak economy, President Roosevelt began
to cut back on funding for social programs for the poor. One
program that was eliminated was the Works Progress
Administration sponsored Social Services Day Nursery that
provided care for the children of African-American working
parents in then racially segregated Alexandria. A group of
teachers including Edith Allen, Helen Day, Connie Chissell and
others, decided to continue the nursery by volunteering their
time and homes. Soon they persuaded the Social Services League
to allow the use of their building at 517 Gibbon Street after
six in the evening. The teachers named the new community center
in honor of Dr. J. Milton Hopkins, an Alexandria African-
American physician who for years had provided medical care to
anyone in need, regardless of ability to pay. Dr. Hopkins died
on July 15, 1927. Soon the nursery qualified to receive funds
through the Community Chest (today's United Way).