Black River one of the oldest towns in the island, being shown on John Sellers 1685 map. It was designed by the Leyden brothers of England, three wealthy men who were substantial land proprietors in the area.
In the 18th and 19th centuries it was a busy seaport for the lucrative log wood trade and for exports of rum, pimento and cattle skin from the nearby Holland, Vineyard and Fullers wood Estates. The Log wood tree trunks were floated down the Black River to the port to be shipped to England for making of dyes.
Slaves were landed here and sold at auction at Farquharson Wharf (originally Town Wharf), which still stands.
In 1773 it replaced Lacovia, 19 miles to the east-north-east, as the capital of St. Elizabeth. Soon after it became the main commercial, economic and transshipment centre of the parish. By the early 1900s it was second only to Kingston in importance
