BIRTH FAMILY Resources
Our organization was the Florence Crittenton Home of Washington, DC for nearly 90 years of our existence. We were not an adoption agency but did have adoption agencies that worked with some of our residents. The Home was located at 4759 Reservoir Road, NW in the District of Columbia (currently the Lab School of Washington). In the 1983, we closed the Home, moved our offices to Silver Spring and began providing school-based services for teen girls and teen mothers.
We have learned from others seeking information that they have been successful by contacting adoption agencies serving the DC area during that era. Also, hospital records from regional hospitals have been useful. Montgomery County health department records are also a potential source. Children born to mothers residing at the Crittenton Home were born in hospitals in DC, Virginia and Maryland.
The National Crittenton Foundation www.nationalcrittenton.org has a database in which you can search for someone as well as post your own search.
The following agencies arranged past adoptions and may be able to provide some information:
DC Child and Family Services, Adoptions Division, Search Unit, Washington, DC, Larcell Arnett, 202-727-3984
Catholic Charities, Adoptions Department, Ms. Williams 202-526-4100
Lutheran Social Services Adoptions Coordinator/ Program Director, Anthony Goliday, 202-723-3000
Family Matters of Greater Washington, 1509 16th Street, NW Washington, D.C., 20036 Tracy Ganaway, tganaway@familymattersdc.org, 202-289-1510 ext 1165, www.familymattersdc.org. Through a trust agreement they took over records from the Pierce-Warwick Adoption Agency which is out of business.
Other Points of Contact
Child and Family Services Agency, division of DC Government, 400 6th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024.
Contact: Mary Hembry, 202-727-4817 or mary.hembry@dc.gov – they do not have past records but help persons who were born in DC search for their birth families.
Virginia Adoption Specialist Jackie Gill or Susanne Ashford 804-726-7524
Montgomery County MD Helen Clark 240-777-4235
Concerned United Birth Parents (CUB) 202-298-1011
P.O. Box 15258 Chevy Chase, MD 20825 (An all volunteer group)
CAUTION: Contact the resources above before paying for any investigation or information. There are many no cost methods to be explored first. Before agreeing to pay for any service, request and check references.
Web Sites
www.adoptions.com Click on left box, Searching for Birth family
http://www.metroreunionregistry.org/ Metro Reunion Registry
http://www.isrr.net/registration.shtml Soundex Reunion Registry
“The Girls Who Went Away” by Ann Fessler also contains many resources.
Note to those in search of birth families: We hope you are able to locate the persons you are looking for and wish you all the best in this difficult process.
We hope this information is useful that you are able to find all the information that you seek. Please send us any information on other adoption agencies that may have records and any other information that would be useful for others seeking their birth family.
The Board and Staff of Crittenton Services send you good wishes for your search.
We would appreciate knowing of your success. Please call or send us an email if you would like to be included in our database.
DC Child and Family Services is to contact Mary Hembry, 202-727-4817.