The Bronx

Geography

The Bronx is Northeast of Manhattan and separated from it by the Harlem River.  It’s bordered by the Hudson River and New Jersey on the west, Westchester County on the North, and The East River and Queens to the east.  The borough has an area of 42 square miles, divided into 49 neighborhoods.  The most famous of which include Little Italy and South Bronx.

Demographics

• 1,332,650 residents, or 31,709 people per square mile
• About 40% of households have children, 30% are married couples.
• Nearly 30% of residents are under 18
• 10% are 18 to 24
• 31% are 25 to 44
• 19% are 45 to 64
• 10% are 65+
• The median age is 31
• median income is $27,611 and per capita income is $13,959.
• 31% of the population lives below the poverty line
• 29% White
• 48% Hispanic of any race
• 35% Black
• There is a large population of Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and West Africans.  The majority of residents do not speak English as their native language.

Culture

Some of The Bronx’s dozens of famous residents include Woody Allen, George Carlin, Howard Dean, E. L. Doctorow, Lou Gehrig, Billy Joel, Calvin Klein, Stanley Kubrick, Ralph Lauren, Al Pacino, Edgar Allan Poe, Chiam Potok, Colin Powell, Theodore Roosevelt, Neil Simon, Mark Twain, Luther Vandross, and Nobel Prize winner Rosalyn Sussman Yalow.

Hip Hop originated in The Bronx in the 70s.  The borough is home to several major cultural centers, including the Pregones Theater, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, the Bronx Zoo, Yankee Stadium, and the New York Botanical Garden.

History

At the turn of the 20th century, immigrants, mostly Irish, Jewish, and Italian, flooded into the Bronx thanks to the extension of the Subway system.  Gang activity and organized crime was active during the prohibition, and from 1940 on into the 60s, most of the white, European residents left the borough, leaving a large Hispanic and Black population. The borough has undergone a sea of change in terms of crime and poverty, beginning in the early 90s, with new residential developments and increased economic activity.  The National Civic Leage designated the Bronx an All American City in 1997.