Sullivan County has always been home to people working toward human rights for everyone. They include abolitionists in the 19th century as well as the men and women who developed Lucky Lake Estates in Tusten, one of the few 20th century resorts available to Black people.
Read on to learn about their lives and accomplishments and consider the lessons that can be applied in the fight for equality today.
Even before it was incorporated, Sullivan County was formed in part by enslavement. The 1790 U.S. Census showed that powerful families like the Cuddebacks and De Puys enslaved many people to work on their large farms and serve their families. Legislators representing the area in the late 18th century fought against abolition in New York.
Most freedom-seekers followed the Hudson River and so did not pass through Sullivan County. Still, Black and white people in the area worked together to help freedom-seekers and abolish enslavement altogether. In 1827, a Virginia family visiting Monticello brought two enslaved people, George and Ona, with them. Quakers in the area sprang into action and helped George and Ona to safety. Some formerly enslaved people like Jennie Thompson remained after abolition and helped build a Black community in the county.
Federal housing policy starting in the 1930s transformed the way people lived in Sullivan County and elsewhere. The federal government provided tens of millions of dollars in loans for white people to buy houses in the suburbs. Black people were considered negative influences and could not receive loans. Racially restrictive covenants prevented Black people from living in some white neighborhoods unless they were working as servants.
The Black community in Sullivan County responded by fighting back – but also by prioritizing joy. Most of the lakefront resorts in the Catskills were segregated by race or ethnicity. Lucky Lake Estates, on Luxton Lake in Tusten, was one of the few that welcomed white and Black people alike