Naval Powder Factory

Naval Powder Factory, Unknown photographer, Indian Head, Maryland, 1998. Courtesy Maryland Historical Trust

While southern Maryland resisted integration, several barriers were removed at Indian Head, where the Navy had an established base (now the Naval Ordnance Station), making it federal property. The president of the Charles County NAACP and Shop Councilman at the then-Naval Powder Factory, Luther Stuckey, leveraged the federal designation to push for progress in the small town. Starting in 1942, Stuckey worked tirelessly with the national NAACP to successfully address many issues, including deplorable changing room conditions for Black women employees, desegregating the cafeteria, sexual exploitation of Black women, removal of discriminatory signs, school and bus integration, and pay inequality for teachers.