4635 North Market Street

In October 1941, Scovel Richardson (1912–82), a Black associate professor at Lincoln University School of Law, bought this property, which was covered by a restrictive covenant that did not expire until December 1942. To make the purchase, he had the help of a white straw party and a Black agent employed by the white-owned Dolan Real Estate Company. By carefully timing their closing date and deed transfer, Richardson and his wife were able to move into the house late in the week, knowing their white neighbors would notice their presence over the weekend. As expected, the Marcus Avenue Improvement Association confronted the Dolan Real Estate Company, which had a subpoena served the following Monday.

Richardson's legal strategy was to use a series of delays, each one causing long postponements before the hearing, which did not take place until the following March. During this time, the Richardsons were harassed by threatening phone calls, stink bombs, searchlights flashing through their windows, and snoopers around their home. The restriction on the Richardson house expired in December 1942.

In December 1944, the case of Dolan v. Richardson finally came to trial, but the case was thrown out of court because the restriction had expired and the plaintiff had no grounds upon which to sue.

Scovel Richardson, a graduate of the University of Illinois and Howard University School of Law, went on to serve as dean of Lincoln University School of Law from 1944 to 1953. He became the first Black person admitted to the St. Louis and American Bar Associations and the first Black attorney in Missouri to be named a member of the American Law Institute. In 1953, President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Richardson as the first Black member of the United States Parole Board; he was named the boards chairman in 1954. After 4 years he was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate as a judge on the United States Customs Court. He received the Urban League Citation for Progress in Human Relations and Civic Achievement in 1953.