Blackwater

Blackwater is a location featured in Red Dead Redemption in the Great Plains region of the West Elizabeth territory. Blackwater is an industrialized settlement and is the largest city in Red Dead Redemption, serving the area as a thriving port on Flat Iron Lake. As the most modern settlement in the world of Red Dead Redemption, it features cobblestone streets with lamps, the first production cars, and telephone lines. The city has also been the site of a bloody gunfight dubbed the "Massacre of Blackwater" in 1899.

Background
Blackwater also features a unique law enforcement system (instead of the sheriffs and deputies found within other regions), complete with a uniformed police unit and modern ranks.

Blackwater becomes accessible once the player has gained access to West Elizabeth.

The Stranger side-mission "American Lobbyist" begins and ends in the gazebo in Blackwater Plaza, with a quick trip into the Bank. The Stranger side-mission "The Wronged Woman" begins and ends at Blackwater Chapel, but also has a trip to the Blackwater Saloon, where the Stranger side-mission "The Prohibitionist" begins and ends. And the final Stranger side-mission "Remember My Family" begins here outside the Train Station.

Though Blackwater is a modernized city, there is still crime that exists even though there are Marshals around town. This crime is exemplified when performing the Nightwatch job there.

Blackwater is the only town with two police stations. One is shared with the Bureau of Investigation, with the other one quite close to the saloon.

Blackwater Streets
Blackwater is the only town in Red Dead Redemption with notable street names. The names of the streets are:
 * Main Street
 * Wapiti Avenue
 * Tullalah Drive
 * Quayside Road
 * Van Horn Street
 * Sisika Avenue

Amenities

 * Blackwater Chapel
 * Bureau Headquarters/Police Station
 * Cinema
 * Doctor's Office
 * First National Bank
 * General Store
 * Gunsmith
 * Newspapers (can be purchased next to the Train Station).
 * Safehouse
 * Saloon
 * Stagecoach
 * Tailor
 * Telegraph Office
 * Train Station
 * Wanted Posters (can be found inside the Train Station).

Activities

 * Blackjack
 * Nightwatch
 * Poker
 * There are two poker locations in Blackwater, one is in the saloon below the player's safehouse, and the other is a high-stakes game room in the Blackwater Hotel, the last building on the right going north up Main St. from Blackwater Saloon. The game room is upstairs, but the player can only enter it, and thus the game, when wearing the Gentleman's Attire.

Known Glitches

 * (360/PS3) You can still get inside the bank when it's closed at night. To do so, you need to break the window to the left of the front door, and just jump through it. You will be inside the bank with no interior, and you can look through the walls. To get out, just shoot at the door multiple times and it will open up randomly.
 * (PS3 confirmed only) In the saloon, if you sprint down the staircase and immediately push someone either playing blackjack, or at least in the vacinity of the table, it is sometimes possible to glitch-teleport anywhere in the area. Possible locations include the room behind the bar (with the locked door) and even a high distance in the sky resulting in a long drop and obvious death.
 * (360/Other?) There is a way to get to the upstairs of the bank. You must get a stage coach, line it up at the back of the building so that the driver's side is closer to the wall, shoot all the horses and Marston will be forced to get off the coach. He should go through the wall and end up on the stairs that lead to the second floor (Note: If you don't go through the wall, then you didn't get close enough to the building). This lets you get to the room where Dutch Van Der Linde shot the bank teller. If you go into that room then there will be no interior.
 * (PS3/Other?) Randomly while riding into Blackwater on your horse, you will find yourself and your horse on top of a roof. When jumping off of the roof, your horse will die. (Multiplayer confirmed only)

Trivia

 * There are two towns in the United States named Blackwater:
 * Blackwater, Arizona
 * Blackwater, Missouri
 * It is possible that Blackwater is a reference to Blackwater USA (now Xe Services LLC), a private military company that is the largest of the U.S. government's three private security contractors. Similarly to John Marston, the company acts as a federally-sponsored hired gun. See Blackwater Worldwide for reference.
 * In the first mission, Exodus in America, John explains to Jake on the way to Fort Mercer that Blackwater, "...is not really a city, just a town with disillusions."
 * Just north of Blackwater station on the section of rail that curves round to the west is a telegraph pole that has been positioned incorrectly, it is actually placed on the rail. Given the circumstances this could lead to a glitch if riding the train and colliding with the pole while the train is moving, although the train itself merely passes through it.
 * Take note of the numerous roof access points. If you are being chased by the Marshals, there is no better place to wait for a train than a high up building with only one access point.


 * The town of Blackwater has been compared to Dallas.