Levittown population: 52,983
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Quick Facts
Samuel Snipes, 99, Dies; Lawyer for First Black Family in Levittown, Pa. (The New York Times, 1/10/2019)
Mr. Snipes represented Daisy and Bill Myers when they and their three young children moved into Levittown in 1957. He handled the closing on the home purchase and informed the police that an African-American family would be moving into the development, knowing that controversy would follow, said David Kushner, the author of the 2009 book “Levittown,” which explored the family’s ordeal.
“He felt they had every right to live there,”
Mr. Kushner said. The Myers family’s arrival on Aug. 13, 1957, sparked weeks of unrest, harassment and cross burnings. Threats were made by phone, by mail and by screaming, spitting protesters outside the family’s home. At one point, Mr. Snipes held off a mob until the police arrived.
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