Section 3.1.

Summary of the 1971 Franklin County Common Pleas Court Case against the Northwest Arlington Association

Dissolution. Restitution. Nullification.

In 1971 Judge Clifford Rader of the Franklin County Common Pleas Court handed down the above judgments in a case against the Northwest Arlington Association.(1) Although it affected only five Upper Arlington subdivisions and some additional homes outside of those boundaries, this decision removed the last restriction on who could purchase property within the Upper Arlington community.

The background

In 1970 Alfred Ashley offered to buy a home on Leeds Road in Upper Arlington. In accordance with the provisions of the property deed, Mr. Ashley applied for membership in the Northwest Arlington Association whose acceptance was a stated contingency of this real estate transaction. The Association’s Board denied his application thereby preventing Mr. Ashley, a black man from New Jersey, from completing the purchase.

The Northwest Arlington Association bought the home for the same sales price, a right outlined in their Articles of Incorporation. The Association then proceeded to place the home for sale under the King Thompson Company, a real estate brokerage firm operated by two trustees of the Association. (King Thompson, for whom the company was named, died in 1960).

The lawsuit

Mr. Ashley brought suit against the Association, claiming the denial was due solely to his race and resulted in having lost his job opportunity in Columbus. He was joined in this lawsuit by two white couples living within the Association’s borders (roughly Lane Avenue, Riverside Drive, Farleigh Road and Asbury Road, approximated by the dark maroon shading below).

It is important to note that homes outside of this area were not subject to the Association’s rules.

In 1970, Upper Arlington’s boundaries included all but the dark brown section south of Lane Avenue, the light tan and dark gray sections north of Henderson, and Wyandot Park along Riverside Drive (dark purple). The maroon-shaded area above is a repr…

In 1970, Upper Arlington’s boundaries included all but the dark brown section south of Lane Avenue, the light tan and dark gray sections north of Henderson, and Wyandot Park along Riverside Drive (dark purple). The maroon-shaded area above is a representation of the area governed by the Northwest Arlington Association. At this time, properties in the remaining sections of Upper Arlington were not bound by the racially-restrictive “Fifth” clause nor the Association’s rules. (Image courtesy of the City of Upper Arlington — History Walk at Northam Park.)

the judgment

According to a 1971 article in The Columbus Dispatch, the court settlement included these resolutions:

  1. Dissolution of the Northwest Arlington Association, founded in 1948. 

  2. Payment of $1,500 to Mr. Ashley.

  3. Refund of $50 to Association members (their membership fee).

  4. Declaration that the property deeds’ restrictive covenants are invalid.

  5. Disbursement of the Association’s assets to the City of Upper Arlington for civic improvements.(2)

No longer was race, ethnicity or religion a barrier to purchasing a home within the Association’s borders, a right already present in the majority of the Upper Arlington community at the time.

References: 

(1) Cook, Herbert. “Arlington Home Owners Group Ordered Dissolved.” The Columbus Dispatch, August 24, 1971, p. 33.

(2) Ashley, et.al. v. Northwest Arlington Association, Franklin County (Ohio) Common Pleas Court (1971)