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Front L to R Leena Bailey Davis, Ava Davis, Milton Jones, Ariel Davis, Ronald Harvey, William Harvey Back L to R Carl Crozier, Leesa Jones, Yvonne Curtis (Clark Curtis/ For WDN)

Milton Jones and Kevin Alsop, owner of Nemas Gardens and co-designer of the park. (Clark Curtis/For WDN)

William Faust (Clark Curtis/For WDN)

(Clark Curtis/For WDN)

(Clark Curtis/For WDN)

(Clark Curtis/For WDN)

By Clark Curtis, For the Washington Daily News

Saturday, June 17th, truly was an emotional day for Leesa Jones, director of the Washington Waterfront Underground Railroad Museum, and her family. They joined together with other members of the community in celebration of Juneteenth, for the official groundbreaking of the Fourth Street Black History Legacy Park. A now vacant lot at the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Van Norden Street where the home of Jones’ grandparents, William and Olivia Cozzens, once stood. “Words fail me as I try to describe my feelings about such a memorable event as the dedication of the Fourth Street Black History Legacy Park,” said Jones. “It was absolutely beautiful. Having my family come from as far away as Maryland at the dedication was such a great blessing.  And to have eight generations of family represented on that land at the dedication was so wonderful.”

“It is truly an honor to see what my aunt Leesa has done, not only for our family but the town of Washington, as it brings such joy to me and my children,” said Gwendolyn Gilbert. “It means so much to know that this is the very land that my great grandparents once lived, and my mother and Aunt Leesa once played on as children. I’m literally standing on the ground that they once walked. It’s almost like standing on the shoulders of giants, and the giants are my family.”

The overall vision for the park, said Jones, is to have a beautiful area with benches where neighbors, locals, and visitors can come to learn about the history of the park and the surrounding area. It will include a community garden in remembrance of the luscious vegetable garden her grandmother once had, a spiritual garden off to one side with benches and shrubs, and a small walking path dotted with historical markers.

“This is just a beautiful moment for myself and the entire family,” said Tiffany Davis, a great-niece of Jones and a 7th-generation descendent of the Cozzens. “This really means a lot, and I get emotional just talking about it. It makes me really proud to be a part of this family. It has been a long time coming.”

Looking forward, Jones says she hopes others will be inspired by what she and her family have done and turn other vacant lots around the city into mini-historical parks. “There were so many community leaders and volunteers who love Washington that came together to join in the planning of this park, how we could make Washington even more special, by working together to keep our streets and vacant lots attractive,” said Jones. “I would love to work with the city of Washington to help develop little history parks on vacant lots that would tell the vibrant histories of the neighborhoods they are located in. It would be a wonderful tourism draw and would help local residents to learn more about the neighborhoods they live in.  The parks could showcase history of the city that are not in the downtown historic district.”

“My husband Chuck and I moved here three years ago and we are very excited to see what all Leesa is doing to help beautify Washington and give back to the community,” said Patsy Pierce. “We love the opportunity to meet new people, learn about Washingtons’ history, and the opportunity to get involved with projects such as this, however we can.”

The formal groundbreaking came at the culmination of Jones’ Black History Walking tour which kicked off Juneteenth festivities in Washington. Beginning at the Washington Waterfront Underground Railroad Museum, Jones perfectly planned to take 913 steps between the museum and the park. Each step represented the 913 days that lapsed before news of President Abraham Lincolns’ signing of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, reached the enslaved people in Galveston, Texas on June 19th, 1865.

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