This 1844 section of this Weston Township map shows the continuation of Blackhawk Street, twice interrupted by the wandering Mill Creek. During the decades following the Civil War, this area, prone to flooding on either side of Blackhawk Street, was home to many of Weston’s Black Community members and entrepreneurial endeavors. Due to access to the Second Missionary Baptist Church and the Weston School for Colored Children, renamed Mary McLeod Bethune School in 1900, baptisms and neighborhood social gatherings were often held here.
Decades later, this section between Thomas and Spring and Main and Washington Streets became Weston City Park.
