Tinner Hill Monument

<i>(Left Side Plaque): </i>This monument commemorates the inhabitants of the Tinner Hill area who risked their livelihoods and their lives to defend the principles of the U.S. Bill of Rights.<br><br><center>Constructed by the <br>Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation<br>Dedicated June 5, 1999</center><br><br>President - Edwin Bancroft Henderson, II<br>Project Director - David Eckert<br>Designer - John Ballou<br>Engineer - Guy Razzi<br>Architect - Mark Coupard<br>State Sponsor - Delegate Robert Hull<br><br>Funded by a Commonwealth of Virginia Grant, the Wollenbert Foundation, individual donations, the donation of land from International Motors and the City of Falls Church.<br><br><i>(Right Side Plaque): </i><b>N.A.A.C.P.'s First Rural Branch</b><br>In 1915, Falls Church ordered residential segregation. Many African-American homeowners would be forced to move. The colored citizens protective league entered a lawsuit to prevent enforcement of the ordinance and joined the N.A.A.C.P. to become its first rural branch in the country. As a result, the segregation ordinance was never enforced and was rescinded in 1917. The Falls Church Branch helped expand the N.A.A.C.P. into rural Virginia, setting a precedent for the South. Crosses were burned and citizens intimidated, but throughout the rest of the century the people of Tinner Hill preserved and successfully fought many battles against segregation.