Historic Freedmen's Town, Fourth Ward is a living laboratory of African American History and Life. The Historic 5 square mile District was founded after the Civil War on June 19, 1865. The Freedmen migrated to Houston from the small farms and plantations south and southwest of Houston along the Brazos River by way of San Felipe Road. Many Freedmen settled on the uninhabitable swampy banks of the Buffalo Bayou on land that belonged to Garrett S. Hardcastle No white man could have worked or lived and endured the insect bites and malaria, snake bites, impure water, and other hardships. However, the Freedmen survived and thrived despite the obstacles.