J.D. & Ethel Shelley House
- Item sets
- AFAM Historic Sites
- Title
- J.D. & Ethel Shelley House
- Description
- The 1948 home of J.D. & Ethel Shelley was the focus of one of the most famous equal protection cases, Shelley vs. Kraemer. After fleeing from racially motivated violence in Mississippi, the Shelleys sought refuge in St. Louis, but were unaware of the restrictive covenant on the title and were sued by a white homeowner 10 blocks away. The landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court, rendered May 3, 1948, held that racial restrictive covenants cannot be enforced in the land. This house stands as a testament to the combatting of institutionalized racism at the federal level, and a reminder that such practices still exist today.
- Creator
- Matt Oehring
- Semester
- Intro to Public History
- Subject
- Historic Marker Nominations
- J.D. & Ethel Shelley
- Shelley vs. Kraemer
- Racially Motivated Violence
- United States Supreme Court
- Racial Restrictive Covenants
- Institutionalized Racism
- St. Louis History
- Black St. Louis History and Experience
- Language
- English
- Publisher
- UMSL Digital Humanities Lab
- Date
- 2020
- Identifier
- Coordinates: 38° 40.033′ N, 90° 14.695′ W