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i think chicago but recent times seems to counter that idea.
the central mercantile exchange was the capital during the industrial revolution before there was a wall street; also, chicago was the main destination for the post slavery migration.
Atlanta is on the list because, during slavery, and after slavery free African Americans were wealthy business owners and land owners in Charleston, SC, It was the capital of black wealth in the south, those same families migrated to Atlanta
There were cities like Richmond, VA, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, PA, Baltimore, MD, but dark skin blacks faced discrimination from light skin blacks, so Charleston was a place where dark skin blacks could make it, and like I said those wealthy families moved to Atlanta
True that changed later years after education civil rights movement and black segregation too one black community now it's more classism like most communities.
True that changed later years after education civil rights movement and black segregation too one black community now it's more classism like most communities.
The military played a good part for black middle class too
Alphabetical Order Top 10 Old Money black Communities
Atlanta
Baltimore
Boston
Chicago
Detroit
Houston
Los Angeles
New York
Philadelphia
Washington D.c.
Honorable Mention
Charlotte
Memphis
Cleveland Heights area
Miami Gardens area
Dallas, Desoto Cedar Hill
SF Oakland. Oakland Hills Vallejo Suisan area
People always ignore Phillys stats in this argument.
The first black hospital…Philadelphia.
The first two black colleges…Philadelphia region.
The first independent black church….AME….founded in Philly and headquarters.
The headquarters of Kappa Alpha Psi.
Jack and Jill…founded in Philly.
The first protest against slavery on American soil…Germantown (Philly)
James Forten..one of the first wealthy African American
Philadelphia Tribune…oldest continuous published black newspaper
WEB DuBois “Philadelphia negro” one of the first studies of social-economics of black community
African Epsicopal Church-St Thomas….first black episcopal church
Remember Philly was the southernest free city in the old Mason-Dixon slavery days. So Philly (and even Cincinnati for the same reason) naturally had a lot of free blacks; and since the draft riots, even more than NYC in that time. It had the largest black population in the North in most of the 19th century.
Cecil B Moore, C Delores Tucker, Leon Sullivan, Octavius Catto, William Gray, Paul Robeson, John Coltrane, Bayard Rustin, Marian Anderson, the Purvis family, the Alexander Family, Henry Tanner, Alain Locke
Julian Abele…who designed Duke campus and the Art museum; the first black graduate of Penn architecture
Ramond Pace Alexander..first black grad of Wharton
Leon Sullivan…first black board member of a major corporation
Sadie Alexander…first black woman to practice law in PA. First national president of the delta sorrority.
DC and NY…then Chicago eventually passed philly by the 20th century but all I posted speaks to the legacy of a once large and very influential community of upper-income African Americans in the city. Only DC and maybe the free population in NO can match its legacy of “firsts” in creating the kind of institutions that were founded and populated by that class.
People don’t see the wealth because the upper class community in Philadelphia is not as large as DC, Atlanta and it’s members tend to assimilate into integrated communities or live in the city itself in places like Germantown, Mt Airy, Chestnut Hill or Wynnefield or Ardmore outside of it (lots of small black historic communities throughout the main line suburbs; working for the rich put you in the relative upper class back then). Some live in Cheltenham/Abington, Willingboro (maybe they used to), East DelCo including Drexel Hill and Darby (historically) and Delaware and South Jersey. So you can’t say black in Philly control a county like in those places; but we are more integrated than those places….which is a success in some ways. The upper class in Philly tends to mirror the old money upper class in its style; which is the old Quaker thing of being discreet and private; so they’re not as visible as other communities but they’re there.
Last edited by PHILLYUPTOWN; 03-20-2023 at 11:41 PM..
Facts. I love Philly never been there but
The history culture and true urban lifestyles
A plus with a lot of black culture and ownership
And being one of affordable big cities close to Ny
DC's Jersey if the economy was alot better or stronger
I would live there despite the weather.
Yes Philly is them communities still has well established
Black Middle class
With all due respect does the black community (I am black myself) even have a super large old money community worth making a thread over?
In comparison the old money white communities goes back to times when black folks were either still in slavery or dealing with segregation.
But to entertain this thread I usually associate old black money probably with somewhere south since the great migration to the north was not really too long ago.
I know some old people in NYC today who were birthed in South and North Carolina.
If anything, the black community is by far new money than old and for the first time I will legit agree with ATL and DC might win the old money conversation.
With all due respect does the black community (I am black myself) even have a super large old money community worth making a thread over?
In comparison the old money white communities goes back to times when black folks were either still in slavery or dealing with segregation.
But to entertain this thread I usually associate old black money probably with somewhere south since the great migration to the north was not really too long ago.
I know some old people in NYC today who were birthed in South and North Carolina.
If anything, the black community is by far new money than old and for the first time I will legit agree with ATL and DC might win the old money conversation.
There have been black communities in the Northeast that go back to the 1600's. While there was enslavement, you also had some free black people in the cities in the region. So, even in the Northeast, you had your relatively affluent black people in the region going back centuries.
There have been black communities in the Northeast that go back to the 1600's. While there was enslavement, you also had some free black people in the cities in the region. So, even in the Northeast, you had your relatively affluent black people in the region going back centuries.
Right, in the South most of the population (over 90%) were inslaved.
And there was so much political opposition to voting much less starting institutions.
Thats why the first black operated churches were in the north; they wouldn't let them church. Either the slave master preached (like in 12 years a slave) or the slaves were in the back or upper pews of the towns church's....knowing church got political they wouldn't let them do that.
Thats why most of the black institutions started in the North; less political opposition. With the exception of New Orleans which is famous for its antebellum free black population.
Why D.C. has the legacy it does; idk, maybe because it was the largest city in (what was considered) the South...up until Houston, Dallas and Miami passed them, Atlanta and D.C. were the largest regions in the South; the region with the largest black population, so it makes sense really.
Then New York and Chicago and a lesser extent Philly and Baltimore got much of the Great Migration migrants so that's why they're up there. Migrants, by nature, were more ambitious and entrepreneurial, first to be able to afford the ticket and then leave everything you know to move North took something. Those that moved had that spark, and that spark created the Harlem and Bronzeville of lore.
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