Browne, Samuel A. (1873 – 1971)

Samuel A. Browne was a postman, and his wife, Catherine, a school teacher, who lived in the Castleton Hill section of Staten Island. The only family of color in the immediate area they were subjected to a prolonged effort by their white neighbors to drive them from their neighborhood. Beginning with physical assaults on the Browne's home, and including numerous spoken and written attacks, including from the Klu Klux Klan, the efforts went on for months and months. Browne refused to be intimidated and with the help of the African American community fought back. With the assistance of the NAACP Samuel sued a real estate agent and a number of his neighbors for damages. The Browne's stayed in their home and would not be brought down by the blatant racism of their neighbors. However, incidents like this were indicative of the challenges faced by families of color as they moved into all white neighborhoods on Staten Island. (Read more in the articles below).

Community leader William A. Morris Sr. assisted the Brownes, helped keep tempers calm, and with Samuel founded a Staten Island branch of the NAACP in response to this incident.