Thurston is gone, but his woods remain. Trees are the first thing you notice in this far North Side neighborhood: a stately conclave of oaks and ashes, maples and hickories, some of them much older than the homes they shelter. Thurston Woods is a mid-twentieth century community, developed on either side of World War II by Milwaukeeans moving up from older neighborhoods to the south. Today's population is largely African-American, diversity remains one of the neighborhood's core strengths, and residents wouldn't have it any other way. Said one, "This neighborhood is the best-kept secret in Milwaukee."