Capitol Cab
Capitol Cab began in 1924 as the Howard Cab Company. It was founded by a group of African Americans who needed jobs, including several doctors and lawyers who couldn't practice their professions due to racial prejudice and segregation.
Incorporated in 1951 as the Capitol Cab Cooperative Association, the company employed more than 1,800 drivers at its peak, making it one of the largest African-American-owned businesses in the nation. In 2003, due to increasing financial difficulties, Capitol Cab declared bankruptcy and was later purchased by Transco, Inc.
But the Capitol story continues today.
Capitol Cab endures as a living legacy in the District because many drivers still choose to operate under the Capitol banner. Among these drivers several African American men, well past retirement age, help carry on an expression of black entrepreneurship begun almost a century ago.
