Editing Blacksburg, Virginia (section)

===The Black family (1772–1797)===
Samuel Black, whose family settled in [[Staunton, Virginia]], bought {{convert|600|acre|km2}} of land in the Draper's Meadow area for his sons John and William in 1772. [[Smithfield (Blacksburg, Virginia)|Smithfield Plantation]], built in approximately 1774 by Colonel [[William Preston (Virginia soldier)|William Preston]],<ref name="smithfield"/> was developed on the original Draper's Meadow site, near the current location of the Duck Pond on the [[Virginia Tech]] campus.

When Samuel Black died in 1792, the land was evenly divided into two sections by his sons. The road now known as Draper Road is the dividing line between the sections. John Black's property was later developed as the majority of the central campus of Virginia Tech.

In 1797, William Black laid out a small grid of streets and lots comprising 16 blocks on a portion of his land. The original town was limited to the area bounded by present-day Draper Road, Jackson Street, Wharton Street, and Clay Street.<ref name="early"/> The town logo contains 16 small squares that create a larger square, representing the original 16 square blocks that were a part of Black's design.