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A new Virginia historical marker in Mount Vernon honors a local resident whose fight against racial discrimination reached the U.S. Supreme Court and helped desegregate recreational associations nationwide.
About 70 people gathered June 29 at Little Hunting Park in the Bucknell community to recognize Paul Sullivan, who challenged the park’s refusal to admit an African American family nearly six decades ago. Sullivan, a former community member, died in 1987.
“History is not just written in textbooks. It’s living right here,” park board president Jamie Atala told attendees during the hot, humid Sunday ceremony.
In 1965, Sullivan rented a Bucknell subdivision house to Theodore R. Freeman Jr. He sought to transfer his Little Hunting Park membership to the Freeman family as part of the lease, but the park’s board denied the transfer in part because the family was African American.
After Sullivan protested the decision, the board revoked his membership. The Sullivan and Freeman families sued in 1966 but lost several appeals.
The case eventually reached the nation’s highest court. In December 1969, the justices ruled 5-3 in Sullivan v. Little Hunting Park that excluding African Americans violated the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and constituted illegal housing discrimination. Together with the Fair Housing Act of 1968, the decision led to the desegregation of recreational associations across the country.
Virginia Sen. Scott Surovell said he learned about the case after reading Sullivan’s obituary in 2011 and began researching it. He later suggested establishing the marker.
Sullivan faced neighborhood threats during his campaign, including the bombing of his mailbox. Some park members feared that admitting African Americans would cause membership to decline. Lower courts rejected the families’ case, but Sullivan continued fighting.
“Every pool in America became desegregated because of what happened here,” Surovell said. “It’s important to recognize what happened here and honor their struggles.”
Surovell placed the case within Northern Virginia’s broader history of discrimination. He noted that Fairfax County public schools were not fully desegregated until 1966 and that racial barriers at swimming pools continued even after schools were integrated.
He also recalled the discrimination his Jewish grandparents encountered after moving from New York City to Northern Virginia. They helped fight Virginia’s poll tax, which the U.S. Supreme Court declared unconstitutional in the 1966 case Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections.
Julie Langan, director of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, said the marker helps the state present a more complete account of its past. Before 1930, only three of roughly 700 Virginia markers addressed African American history, she said. Today, 480 of the state’s 2,600 markers—about 18 percent—do so.
“This brings us closer to the marker system we’re trying to achieve,” Langan said.
Mount Vernon Supervisor Dan Storck said the case demonstrated how determined individuals can produce lasting change.
“Things happen because someone took a stand,” he said. “We all are responsible for making a difference, and we cannot let past barriers get in the way.”
Members of Sullivan’s family joined the dedication. His grandson, Liam Sullivan of Bristow, led the unveiling, while Liam’s 16-year-old son, Luke, said it was “awesome” to see his great-grandfather recognized.
Paul Sullivan’s daughter, Isabelle, traveled from Richmond for the ceremony. She was 10 when her father began his campaign.
“This is wonderful,” she said. “This would make my parents happy.”
Local resident Jube Shiver praised the marker’s symbolism and history. Mount Vernon resident Jane Schaffner recalled studying the case during her first year at Georgetown University Law Center.
Little Hunting Park is now a 10-acre facility with 545 members and the Gators swim team. The 70-year-old park and its new marker are at 7000 Canterbury Lane, near Quander and Beacon Hill roads.
Virginia established its historical highway marker program in 1927, beginning with markers installed along U.S. Route 1. It is the oldest such program in the United States.