Skip to main content Skip to main navigation

Oral History Interview with Susan Mullin, October 14, 2015

Scope and Contents

In this interview Mullins recalls how she became involved with the Long Island Historical Society in the early 1980s and helped to start its transformation into the Brooklyn Historical Society. She tells about the conflicts among the board of directors over the proposed name change in 1984-85, her involvement with early donors such as Don Othmer and the Shellens family, and life in Brooklyn Heights in 1970s and 1980s. She also shares anecdotes about visiting Eastern Europe and the U.S.S.R. as a student, around 1964.

When David Kahn and Deborah Schwartz join the interview after the first hour, Mullin and Kahn share stories relating to the institution's collections, the condition of the BHS building, members of the board of directors, and their adventures in fundraising. Interview conducted by Zaheer Ali.

Biographical / Historical

Susan Spaulding Mullin (1945- ) was born in Richmond, Virginia, and grew up in the small town of Chase City, in southern Virginia, where her father farmed and ran a lumber business. She attended Hollins College in Roanoke, Virginia, where she studied Economics. After marrying John Mullin, the couple moved to Brooklyn Heights in the late 1960s, where she ran an antiques store and interior design firm during the 1970s. In 1981, she joined the board of directors of the Brooklyn Historical Society (which was then called the Long Island Historical Society) and served as the board's president from 1985 to 1990. She lives in Brookneal, Virginia.

Conditions Governing Access

This interview is not currently accessible.

Center for Brooklyn History
128 Pierrepont Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201