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For those that do not realize, this area of the Bronx has seen extraordinary development since the late 1980s. The vast majority of vacant lots have been developed on and those that remain are in the planning stages. Almost all of the pre-war apartment buildings are now occupied, although quite a few are in need of yet another extensive renovation. The neighborhood retains a lot of it s old character in that it is still dense and dominated by pre-war 5 and 6 story apartment buildings, but it is much more vibrant then it has been in decades.
While Morisannia has always been known as a primarily black neighbourhood within the South Bronx, CPE has traditionally been majority PR. .
Morrisania was majority black 15-20 years ago. Nowadays there are more Hispanics. Though large concentrations of blacks can still be found in the project area along Webster, Park, Washington and Third Avenues and further north all the way up to Cross Bronx. In CPE Charlotte Gardens area is roughly about fifty/fifty black and Hispanic.
Also nowadays when you see a person from distance with black hair lurking next to a fire hydrant and a vacant parcel of land you might think that's a Rican but in many cases upon closer examination turns out to be a Mexican.
Last edited by Northwindsforever; 02-27-2013 at 04:38 AM..
I've always considered east of Prospect and north of Westchester as East Morrisania but according to this link it's Longwood. Hall Place is in Longwood...
I've always considered east of Prospect and north of Westchester as East Morrisania but according to this link it's Longwood. Hall Place is in Longwood...
I think the boundaries between these two neighbourhoods are pretty fluid, and are often disputed. During my research I've seen countless maps of Bronx neighbourhoods, and most of them show Morisannia ending at Prospect in the east. While some maps seem to include CPE in the Longwood neighbourhood, and others refer to it as either CPE, or much more seldomly, Morisannia East, more often it seems to remain a grey area that isn't even labeled. I've even seen it lumped in with West Farms.
I also think you'll find a lot of people who live in the South Bronx don't seem to differentiate between the neighbourhoods we talk about here on the forums, and many of them don't even know the names, and if they do, theY don't use them often. If you asked them where they lived they'd probably just say the Bronx, or the South Bronx, or maybe give you a street or intersection. Many residents that I've met (not on the Net, where people from the Bronx are much more familiar with the names of the individual neighbourhood names) seem to understand the geography of their neighbourhood by streets and intersections more so than by the name of a neighbourhood. So if someone from Tremont was asked where their girlfriend lived, they wouldn't say "down in Mott Haven," but more likely "138th and Willis," or something like that.
In regards to the changing demographics of Morisannia, I think that even with the influx of new ethnic groups, the black population is still the largest ethnic group in the area, even if it may not be 50% + any longer. As was mentioned, the many housing projects located in Morisannia (including the massive Claremont projects along Webster Ave.) have many black residents, and while I had a very difficult time finding statistics on racial demographics in the neighbourhood, I did find a map on Wikipedia (File:Bronxrace.PNG - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) that shows a larger concentration of black residents in Morisannia than any other neighbourhood in the South Bronx. As the map makes clear, the vast majority of black residents in the Bronx have moved to the northern part of the borough, but there still is a significant black presence in Morisannia compared to the surrounding neighbourhoods, including CPE (another reason why I've chosen to classify it together with Longwood and Hunts Point), and the map doesn't seem to include the projects, which would be much more informative.
As far as my own experience goes, during the time I spent in Morisannia (which really wasn't that much compared to some other neighbourhoods in the SB) I noticed a lot more black residents out and about than I did in any other SB hood. This was especially true along Webster Ave., south of the Cross Bronx near the Claremont projects. There definitely is a Puerto Rican presence in the area as well, because I ate in a little Puerto Rican diner one of the times I was there, but the customers were mostly African American.
As others have mentioned, there has been a lot of Hispanic groups from Mexico, the Dominican Republic and elsewhere moving to traditionally PR neighbourhoods. While I never really pay much attention to this sort of thing when I visit the Bronx, and have not noticed this demographic shift, I've heard about it enough times to believe that it is happening in almost every neighbourhood. I'm wondering what the posters here think about this transition, and how long they think it will take for the Puerto Ricans to become the minority in PR strongholds like Mott Haven, Melrose, Tremont, Belmont, Hunts Point, Longwood, CPE, Soundview, West Farms, and others.
I
In regards to the changing demographics of Morisannia, I think that even with the influx of new ethnic groups, the black population is still the largest ethnic group in the area, even if it may not be 50% + any longer. As was mentioned, the many housing projects located in Morisannia (including the massive Claremont projects along Webster Ave.) have many black residents, and while I had a very difficult time finding statistics on racial demographics in the neighbourhood, I did find a map on Wikipedia (File:Bronxrace.PNG - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) that shows a larger concentration of black residents in Morisannia than any other neighbourhood in the South Bronx.
Here's a map by census tract. Zoom in, select black population after clicking on the arrow next view more maps:
I don't know the exact boundaries of Morisannia, but it looks like the black % is around 45%. The community district it's in as a whole has seen a decline in the % black non-hispanic, but the number has stayed flat, all the increase has been in hispanic population:
Tremont is not a PR stronghold..it is def leaning Dominican today. I would say the remaining PR strongholds are south and eastern Bronx, including Hunts Point, Longwood, Woodstock, Soundview, Castle Hill, Clason Point, and growing in suburbia Bronx like Throgs Neck, Morris Park, Pelham Bay, etc..basically follow where the lower density 2 and 3 family homes are and that's where you'll find the population. The areas with dense 5 story tenement buildings like up and down the concourse are now african (from Africa), Dominican, and increasingly Mexican. Mott Haven because of all the housing projects still has a strong PR presence, but it is becoming Mexican/South American.
I did find a map on Wikipedia (File:Bronxrace.PNG - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) that shows a larger concentration of black residents in Morisannia than any other neighbourhood in the South Bronx. As the map makes clear, the vast majority of black residents in the Bronx have moved to the northern part of the borough, but there still is a significant black presence in Morisannia compared to the surrounding neighbourhoods, including CPE (another reason why I've chosen to classify it together with Longwood and Hunts Point), and the map doesn't seem to include the projects, which would be much more informative.
It's true, nobody is claiming otherwise but nowadays hispanics outnumber blacks.
As for CPE which you describe as one of the ultimate PR strongholds of South Bronx is more black then you think especially the central part. (Charlotte Gardens area)
The highest African American neighborhoods in the south Bronx (going by the old definition) are Morris Heights and Morissania.
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