Ernestine Hill

My connection with the West End started in 1958, when I was born. My mother's mother had lived in the West End for, I know, 40 years before I was even born.

It was wonderful. It was a well-knit community. We looked out for one another. If one person didn’t have something, someone else would step in and help.

We had the best times. We had the park right there on Ezzard Charles, where we could go, run, and have fun. We had the Lincoln Center, where we could go swimming in the summertime. We had the Regal Theater, and we could go to the movies. We had a full childhood.

Those were the days. We looked forward to getting out and being around the people in our community. It was a time — and it was a special time — because we were just really finding out who we were as Black people.