Gum Springs in Hybla Valley in Fairfax County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), October 1, 2023
1. Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections Marker
Inscription.
Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections. . African Americans Annie E. Harper and Gladys Berry, who lived on Fordson Road in Gum Springs, and Curtis and Myrtle Burr, who had previously lived on Fordson Road, filed a federal lawsuit in March 1964 challenging Virginia's poll tax, which residents had to pay before registering to vote in state elections. The case was later combined with a similar suit initiated by Evelyn Butts of Norfolk. A federal court ruled against the plaintiffs in Nov. 1964. On appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court determined in Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections (1966) that the poll tax requirement in state elections violated the 14th Amendment, invalidating the tax in Virginia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas.
African Americans Annie E. Harper and Gladys Berry, who lived on Fordson Road in Gum Springs, and Curtis and Myrtle Burr, who had previously lived on Fordson Road, filed a federal lawsuit in March 1964 challenging Virginia's poll tax, which residents had to pay before registering to vote in state elections. The case was later combined with a similar suit initiated by Evelyn Butts of Norfolk. A federal court ruled against the plaintiffs in Nov. 1964. On appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court determined in Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections (1966) that the poll tax requirement in state elections violated the 14th Amendment, invalidating the tax in Virginia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas.
Erected 2022 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number E-159.)
Location. 38° 44.831′ N, 77° 4.886′ W. Marker is in Hybla Valley, Virginia, in
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Fairfax County. It is in Gum Springs. It is at the intersection of Fordson Road and Joseph Makell Court, on the left when traveling south on Fordson Road. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2831 Joseph Makell Court, Alexandria VA 22306, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area and in Northern Virginia. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Credits. This page was last revised on October 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 1, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 812 times since then and 109 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on October 1, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
