Julia and Paul Child bought the above Georgetown house in 1948 but only lived in it briefly before being transferred overseas. It wasn't until the mid fifties, when they returned from Paul's assignment in France, that they moved in and made it their own. Armed with new French culinary skills Julia taught cooking classes out of this kitchen and saw her cookbook gain mainstream success. The fact that the house is on Olive Street makes the story all the more perfect given olives are main ingredient in French cooking. However, even before the Childs moved in the house could claim historical significance since it was built by an African-American man shortly after the Civil War (when very few African-Americans had the funds to do so).
· An African-American Carpenter Built Julia Child's House [CoS]