Glen Allen in Henrico County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
School Desegregation Controversy
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), May 9, 2025
1. School Desegregation Controversy Marker
Inscription.
School Desegregation Controversy. . In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. Because of residential segregation and resistance to Brown, Richmond-area schools were still largely segregated in 1970. The Richmond School Board and black plaintiffs sued for a merger with the school systems of predominantly white Henrico and Chesterfield Counties. Federal judge Robert Merhige Jr. ordered this consolidation in Jan. 1972, prompting a campaign of opposition from many county residents. Merhige's ruling was overturned on appeal. A 4-4 decision in the Supreme Court in May 1973 affirmed the appeals court and ended plans for the regional merger.
In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. Because of residential segregation and resistance to Brown, Richmond-area schools were still largely segregated in 1970. The Richmond School Board and black plaintiffs sued for a merger with the school systems of predominantly white Henrico and Chesterfield Counties. Federal judge Robert Merhige Jr. ordered this consolidation in Jan. 1972, prompting a campaign of opposition from many county residents. Merhige's ruling was overturned on appeal. A 4-4 decision in the Supreme Court in May 1973 affirmed the appeals court and ended plans for the regional merger.
Erected 2022 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number EA-8.)
Location. 37° 40.629′ N, 77° 32.37′ W. Marker is in Glen Allen, Virginia, in Henrico
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County. It is on Staples Mill Road (U.S. 33) north of Stone Bluff Drive, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 11012 Stone Valley Ct, Glen Allen VA 23060, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Piedmont, in Central Virginia, and in the Richmond Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, and on the Eastern Seaboard. 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.
Another marker is no longer nearby. Meadow Farm (was approx. 1.2 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).
Credits. This page was last revised on May 9, 2025. It was originally submitted on May 9, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 265 times since then and 34 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on May 9, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
