In this interactive lesson, students will learn about Nicodemus, an all-Black town established in Kansas following the Civil War. Nicodemus was supposed to be the answer for Black people looking for new opportunities and freedoms that had failed to materialize after Reconstruction. Students will analyze federal legislation and policies that promoted westward expansion and—through photographs, maps, videos, and graphs—examine how Black people took advantage of such opportunities. At the end of the lesson, students will explore the fate of Nicodemus, recognize the town’s legacy, and examine the efforts of the original settlers’ descendants to keep their story alive. They will answer the essential question: How did African Americans take advantage of westward expansion to obtain freedom denied to them during Reconstruction?