Mott Haven, Bronx
Encyclopedia
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Zip codes include 10451, 10454, and 10455. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 1
Bronx Community Board 1
Bronx Community Board 1 is a local government unit of the city of New York, encompassing the neighborhoods of Mott Haven, Melrose, and Port Morris in the borough of the Bronx...
. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: East 149th Street to the north, the Bruckner Expressway
Bruckner Expressway
The Bruckner Expressway is a freeway in The Bronx. It carries Interstate 278 and Interstate 95 from the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge to the south end of the New England Thruway at the Pelham Parkway interchange....
to the east, the Bronx Kill waterway to the south, and the Harlem River
Harlem River
The Harlem River is a navigable tidal strait in New York City, USA that flows 8 miles between the Hudson River and the East River, separating the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx...
to the west. East 138th Street is the primary east-west thoroughfare through Mott Haven. The local subway
New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the City of New York and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, a subsidiary agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and also known as MTA New York City Transit...
is the IRT Lexington Avenue Line
IRT Lexington Avenue Line
The Lexington Avenue Line is one of the lines of the IRT division of the New York City Subway, stretching from Downtown Brooklyn or Lower Manhattan north to 125th Street in East Harlem. The portion in Lower and Midtown Manhattan was part of the first subway line in New York...
( trains), operating along East 138th Street. The local buses are the Bx1, Bx2, Bx15, Bx17, Bx21, Bx32, Bx33. Mott Haven is served by the Triborough Bridge, the Third Avenue Bridge and the Willis Avenue Bridge
Willis Avenue Bridge
The Willis Avenue Bridge is a swing bridge that carries road traffic northbound over the Harlem River between the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx, United States. It connects First Avenue in Manhattan with Willis Avenue in the Bronx...
. The closest Metro-North Railroad
Metro-North Railroad
The Metro-North Commuter Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, or, more commonly, Metro-North, is a suburban commuter rail service that is run and managed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority , an authority of New York State. It is the busiest commuter railroad in the United...
stops are Yankees – East 153rd Street and Harlem – 125th Street.
Demographics
Mott Haven is a high density neighborhood with a population roughly 50,000 within a square mile. The neighborhood consists primarily of Latin Americans, predominantly Puerto Ricans. Like most neighborhoods in New York City the vast majority of households are renter occupied. Over half the population lives below the poverty line and receives public assistance (AFDCAid to Families with Dependent Children
Aid to Families with Dependent Children was a federal assistance program in effect from 1935 to 1996, which was administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services...
, Home Relief, Supplemental Security Income
Supplemental Security Income
Supplemental Security Income is a United States government program that provides stipends to low-income people who are either aged , blind, or disabled. Although administered by the Social Security Administration, SSI is funded from the U.S. Treasury general funds, not the Social Security trust fund...
, and Medicaid
Medicaid
Medicaid is the United States health program for certain people and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the state and federal governments, and is managed by the states. People served by Medicaid are U.S. citizens or legal permanent...
). However there is significant income diversity on a block by block basis. Around the turn of the century the non-Hispanic White population, consisting primarily of high income earners, has been on the rise along with a decline in the non-Hispanic Black population.
Land use and terrain
Mott Haven is dominated by tenement style apartment buildings and large public housing complexes. There are three historical district consisting of brownstone style rowhouses. In the last two decades, construction of modern 2 and 3 unit row-houses and apartment buildings have increased the percentage of owners versus renters. The neighborhood contains one of the highest concentrations of NYCHA projects in the Bronx. The total land area is roughly one square miles. The terrain is low laying and flat though somewhat hilly around St. Mary's Park.Historical districts and landmarks
Three Historic Districts are located in Mott Haven: Mott Haven, Mott Haven East and the Bertine Block:- The Mott Haven Historic DistrictMott Haven Historic DistrictMott Haven Historic District is a national historic district located at Mott Haven, The Bronx, New York, New York. The district includes 125 contributing buildings. It is primarily residential in character with four and five story row houses dating to the last half of the 19th century...
is located on Alexander Avenue between East 138th Street and East 141st Street. The district contains the row of handsome brownstones known historically as Doctors Row and Irish Fifth Avenue as well as the police station, the 1905 neo-renaissance Mott Haven Branch of the New York Public Library and Saint Jerome's Roman Catholic ChurchSt. Jerome's Church (Bronx, New York)The Church of St. Jerome is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located at 230 Alexander Avenue, Mott Haven, Bronx, New York City.-Parish history:...
.
- The Mott Haven East Historic District is located on East 139th and East 140th Street between Brook and Willis Avenues. The district contains rows of handsome brownstones designed by William O'Gorman and William Hornum in 1883 combining Dutch and Flemish architectural aspects on the north side of E.140th Street and neo-Grecian aspects on the south side of E.140th Street and on E.139th Street..
- The Bertine Block Historic District is located on East 136th Street between Brook and Willis Avenues. The district contains yellow-faced brick brownstones designed by Edward Bertine between 1891 and 1895. .
St. Ann's Episcopal Church
St. Ann's Episcopal Church is located on the west side of St.Ann's Avenue between East 139 and East 141st Streets. It is The Bronx' oldest church, having been built in 1841 and dedicated to Gouverneur Morris' mother Ann. Notable figures buried there include Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris was an American landowner and developer from Morrisania, New York. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continental Congress for New York....
, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Goveurneur Morris, and former mayor of New York R.H.Morris.
Public housing projects
The seventeen NYCHA developments in Mott Haven illustrate the various types of public housing initiatives in vogue in New York City over the decades.- There are seventeen NYCHA developments located in Mott Haven.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances I; thirteen buildings, 3, 4, 11 and 19-stories tall.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances II, 13; one 6-story building.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances II, 18; two buildings, 4 and 6-stories tall.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances II, 9A; one 4-story building.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances III, 13; two rehabilitated tenement buildings, 5-stories tall.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances III, 18; one rehabilitated and three abandoned tenement buildings 5-stories tall.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances III, 9A; two rehabilitated tenement buildings 6-stories tall.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances IV; eight buildings, 3, 4 and 5-stories tall with 282 apartments.
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances V; six rehabilitated tenement buildings, 5 and 6-stories tall
- Dr. Ramon E. Betances VI; three rehabilitated tenement buildings, 5 and 6-stories tall.
- Millbrook Houses; nine, 16-story buildings.
- Millbrook Extension; one 16-story building.
- Mitchel Houses; ten buildings, 17, 19, and 20-stories tall.
- Moore Houses; two, 20-story buildings.
- Mott Haven Houses; eight buildings, 20 and 22-stories tall.
- Patterson Houses; fifteen buildings 6 and 13-stories tall.
- Southern Boulevard M.H.O.P. (Multi Family Homeownership Program); One 7-story rehabilitated tenement building
History
St. Ann's Church Complex (Bronx, New York)
St. Ann's Church is a historic Episcopal church in the South Bronx, New York City. It was built in 1840 and donated by Gouverneur Morris Jr. as a family memorial. It is a fieldstone building in the Gothic Revival style with a vernacular Greek Revival style tower...
(ECUSA) on St. Ann's Avenue is the resting place of Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris was an American landowner and developer from Morrisania, New York. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continental Congress for New York....
, Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris , was an American statesman, a Founding Father of the United States, and a native of New York City who represented Pennsylvania in the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation. Morris was also an author of large sections of the...
and other members of that powerful colonial family, and a Registered Historic Place.
As the city below grew, the area quickly developed residentially. At the same time, an upper-middle class residential area, marked by brownstones built in an elaborate and architecturally daring fashion, started to grow along Alexander Avenue by the 1890s. (Doctors Row a/k/a the Irish Fifth Ave.) A series of brownstones on E. 134th St, east of Willis Ave., was known as Judges' Row. Soon after, the Bronx grew more quickly, especially with public transit into the area, including the IRT Ninth Avenue Line
IRT Ninth Avenue Line
The IRT Ninth Avenue Line, often called the Ninth Avenue El, was the first elevated railway in New York City. It opened in 1868 as the West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway, a cable-hauled line. It ceased operation in 1940....
. By the early 20th century, the population density of the area supported the construction of many tenement style apartment buildings.
From the end of the 19th century through the 1940s, Mott Haven was a mixed German-American (north of E. 145th St.)and Irish-American neighborhood (south of E. 145th St), with an Italian enclave west of Lincoln Ave. The derogatory term "pig" for a policeman is thought to have originated here because of a tough Irish cop who wielded his night stick on Willis Ave. drunks without mercy, known as Paddy the Pig of the 40 Pct.
One of the largest parades in NYC took place here in the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was organized by Sean Oglaigh na hEirann, the veterans of the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
, who marched every Easter Sunday, down Willis Ave. from the Hub to E. 138th st., thence west to St. Jerome's. The Star of Munster Ballroom at the NE corner of Willis Ave. and E. 138th St., was a center of Irish music for decades. It was speculated at one time that there were more bars on Willis Ave than on any other city street, given its short distance. More recorded Irish musicians lived in Mott haven than in any place outside of Ireland.
The first Puerto Rican settlements came in the late 1940s along the length of Brook Ave. African-Americans came into the area when Patterson Houses were built.
Mott Haven and Port Morris were the first neighborhoods to give rise to the term "South Bronx". Together, they were originally known as the North Side or North New York. This area was part of New York County after the incorporation of Greater NY in 1898. The Chase Manhattan Bank
Chase Manhattan Bank
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is a national bank that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of financial services firm JPMorgan Chase. The bank was known as Chase Manhattan Bank until it merged with J.P. Morgan & Co. in 2000...
at Third Ave. and E. 137th St., was originally the North Side Board of Trade Bldg (1912). It later became the North Side Savings Bank, which became Dollar Dry Dock, which became Chase.
In the 1940s when the Bronx was usually divided into the East Bronx and West Bronx, a group of social workers identified a pocket of poverty on East 134th Street, east of Brown Place and called it the South Bronx. This pocket of poverty would spread in part due to an illegal practice known as blockbusting
Blockbusting
Blockbusting is a business practice of U.S. real estate agents and building developers meant to encourage white property owners to sell their houses at a loss, by implying that racial, ethnic, or religious minorities — Blacks, Hispanics, Jews et al. — were moving into their previously racially...
and to Robert Moses
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
building several housing projects in the neighborhood. The poverty greatly expanded northward, following the post-war phenomenon colloquially referred to as white flight
White flight
White flight has been a term that originated in the United States, starting in the mid-20th century, and applied to the large-scale migration of whites of various European ancestries from racially mixed urban regions to more racially homogeneous suburban or exurban regions. It was first seen as...
, reaching a peak in the 1960s when the socioeconomic North Bronx-South Bronx boundary reached Fordham Road. At this time a wave of arson destroyed or damaged many of the residential, commercial, and industrial structures in the area.
Today the North Bronx-South Bronx distinction remains more common than the traditional East Bronx-West Bronx distinction, and some still regard Fordham Road
Fordham Road
Fordham Road is a major street in The Bronx borough of New York City. It runs east-west from the Harlem River to Bronx Park.This street runs through the neighborhood of University Heights, divides Fordham from Fordham-Bedford and finally runs along the northern border of Belmont...
as the boundary. Though crime has declined versus the highs of the crack epidemic and revitalization of former abandoned properties is taking place the neighborhood continues to deal with serious crime issues due to its significant population in poverty. There have been significant strides to increase gentrification of the neighborhood by those in the real estate sector however the primary newcomers have been poor and working class. There have been increasing populations of young professional high income earners taking advantage of the more affordable properties, but not close in comparison to that of Northern Brooklyn. The area will likely continue to be lower income for some time due to the fact most of the new housing being built has income ceilings along with all the rest of rent controlled property that already exist.
However Mott Haven was home to the Bronx first organic market and has seen significant improvements in terms of quality of life.
The area is patrolled by the 40th Precinct located at 257 Alexander Avenue. NYCHA property in the area is patrolled by P.S.A. 7 at 737 Melrose Avenue located in the Melrose
Melrose, Bronx
Melrose is primarily a residential neighborhood geographically located in the SouthWestern section of the borough of The Bronx in New York City. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 1. Its boundaries, starting from the North and moving clockwise are: East 161st Street to the North,...
section of the Bronx.
Education
Public:- P.S. 18 John Peter Zenger School (East 148th St and Morris Av)
- P.S. 277 Dr. Evelina Lopez Antonetty (East 147th St and St. Ann's Av)
- P.S. 30 Wilton School (East 141st St and Brook Av)
- P.S. 40 Mott Haven Village (East 140th St and Brook Av)
- P.S. 43 Jonas Bronck School (East 136th St and Brown Place)
- P.S. 49 Willis Avenue School (East 139th St and Willis Av)
- P.S. 65 Mother Hale Academy (East 141st St and Cypress Av)
- I.S. 139 A. Burger Intermediate School (East 143rd St and Brook Av)
- M.S. 223: The Laboratory School of Finance and Technology (East 145th St and Willis Av)
- P.S. 154 Johnathan D. Hyatt School (East 135th St and Alexander Av)
- I.S. 183 Paul Robeson School (East 140th St and Morris Av)
- P.S. 754 School For Career Development/Foreign Language Academy Of Global Studies (East 147th St and Jackson Av)
- South Bronx Charter School for International Cultures and the Arts
- The Bronx Charter School for Children
- The Bronx Academy of Letters
- Bronx School For Law Government And Justice (Schools within Bronx School For Law Government And Justice are Health Opportunities Program)
- Samuel Gompers High School
- KIPP Academy Elementary School
- KIPP Academy Middle School
- Euginio Maria De Hostos Community College (C.U.N.Y.) (Schools within Euginio Maria De Hostos Community College are Hostos Lincoln Academy.)
Parochial:
- Saint Jerome School
- Saint Luke School
- Saint Pius V School
- Saint Pius V High School
Transportation
- Bx1: to RiverdaleRiverdale, BronxRiverdale is an affluent residential neighborhood in the northwest portion of the Bronx in New York City. Riverdale contains the northernmost point in New York City.-History:...
(via Grand ConcourseGrand ConcourseGrand Concourse can refer to:*Grand Concourse , a boulevard in New York City*Grand Concourse , an integrated walkway in Newfoundland and Labrador*Grand Concourse , owned by Landry's Restaurants...
) - Bx2: to Kingsbridge Heights (via Grand ConcourseGrand ConcourseGrand Concourse can refer to:*Grand Concourse , a boulevard in New York City*Grand Concourse , an integrated walkway in Newfoundland and Labrador*Grand Concourse , owned by Landry's Restaurants...
) - Bx15: to Fordham PlazaFordham (Metro-North station)The Fordham Metro-North Railroad station serves the residents of the Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx, New York via the Harlem Line and New Haven Line. It is the only Harlem Line stop in the Bronx that is an express station. It is 8.9 miles from Grand Central Terminal...
or ManhattanvilleManhattanvilleManhattanville is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan bordered on the south by Morningside Heights on the west by the Hudson River, on the east by Harlem and on the north by Hamilton Heights. Its borders straddle West 125th Street, roughly from 122nd Street to 135th Street and...
(via Third Avenue) - Bx17: to Fordham PlazaFordham (Metro-North station)The Fordham Metro-North Railroad station serves the residents of the Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx, New York via the Harlem Line and New Haven Line. It is the only Harlem Line stop in the Bronx that is an express station. It is 8.9 miles from Grand Central Terminal...
(via Prospect-Crotona Avenues) - Bx21: to Westchester Square – East Tremont Avenue ( trains) (via Boston Road–Morris Park Avenue)
- Bx32: to VA Hospital (via Morris Avenue-Jerome AvenueJerome AvenueJerome Avenue is one of the longest thoroughfares in the New York City borough of the Bronx, New York, United States. The road is 5.6 miles long and stretches from Highbridge general area to Woodlawn. Both of these termini are with the Major Deegan Expressway which runs parallel to the west. Most...
) - Bx33: to HarlemHarlemHarlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
or Port Morris, BronxPort Morris, BronxPort Morris is a neighborhood in the southwest Bronx, New York City. It is a heavily industrial neighborhood. Its boundaries are the Major Deegan Expressway and Bruckner Expressway to the north, East 149th Street to the east, the East River to the southeast, the Bronx Kill south, and the Harlem...
(via 138th Street) - 138th Street – Grand Concourse ( trains)
- Third Avenue – 138th Street ( trains)
- Brook AvenueBrook Avenue (IRT Pelham Line)Brook Avenue is a local station on the IRT Pelham Line of the New York City Subway. It is served by the 6 train at all times and is located at Brook Avenue and East 138th Street in Mott Haven, Bronx....
( train) - Cypress AvenueCypress Avenue (IRT Pelham Line)Cypress Avenue is a local station on the IRT Pelham Line of the New York City Subway. It is served by the 6 train at all times and is located at the intersection of Cypress Avenue and East 138th Street in the Bronx....
( train) - East 143rd Street – St. Mary's Street ( train)
- 149th Street – Grand Concourse ( trains)
- Third Avenue – 149th Street ( trains)
Notable natives
- Rapper A.G. of the duo Showbiz and A.G.Showbiz and A.G.Showbiz and A.G. are an American hip hop duo from The Bronx, New York City. Showbiz is a producer and A.G. is a rapper. The two debuted on Lord Finesse's Funky Technician album in 1990. Show and A.G...
, was raised in the Patterson Houses. - Rod StricklandRod StricklandRodney "Rod" Strickland is a retired American professional basketball player and currently in an administrative role for the University of Kentucky basketball team under head coach John Calipari. Strickland was formerly the director of basketball operations at the University of Memphis...
, NBA Player was raised in Mitchel Houses. - Former boxer Iran BarkleyIran BarkleyIran Barkley is a retired American professional boxer who held world titles at three different weights—middleweight , super middleweight and light heavyweight .- Professional career :...
was raised in Patterson HousesPatterson HousesPatterson Houses is a public housing development in the Mott Haven neighborhood of The Bronx, New York City, New York. It is one of the largest New York City Housing Authority complexes in the city with 15 buildings and 1,790 apartments....
. - Former drug lord Guy FisherGuy FisherGuy Thomas Fisher is a convicted racketeer who was once part of The Council, a notorious African-American crime organization that controlled the heroin trade in Harlem from 1972-1983. He became the first black man to own and operate the Apollo Theater in Harlem when he purchased it in 1977...
is from Patterson HousesPatterson HousesPatterson Houses is a public housing development in the Mott Haven neighborhood of The Bronx, New York City, New York. It is one of the largest New York City Housing Authority complexes in the city with 15 buildings and 1,790 apartments....
. - Nate ArchibaldNate ArchibaldNathaniel "Nate" Archibald is a former American professional basketball player. He spent 14 years playing in the NBA, most notably with the Kansas City Kings and Boston Celtics....
, former NBA Player was raised in Patterson HousesPatterson HousesPatterson Houses is a public housing development in the Mott Haven neighborhood of The Bronx, New York City, New York. It is one of the largest New York City Housing Authority complexes in the city with 15 buildings and 1,790 apartments....
. - Rapper Percee PPercee PPercee P is a hip hop artist from the Patterson Projects in The Bronx, New York City, United States. Percee P has been writing and performing since 1979, yet his debut album Perseverance was not released until September 18, 2007, produced entirely by Madlib.He was known in the underground for...
was raised in Patterson HousesPatterson HousesPatterson Houses is a public housing development in the Mott Haven neighborhood of The Bronx, New York City, New York. It is one of the largest New York City Housing Authority complexes in the city with 15 buildings and 1,790 apartments....
. - ESG (band)ESG (band)ESG are a band that emerged from the South Bronx, New York, U.S. in the early 1980's. Trouser Press called it "one of the most dynamic bands that New York could offer at the top of the '80s." ESG have been influential across a wide range of musical genres, including hip hop, post punk, disco,...
are from Moore Houses. - French MontanaFrench MontanaFrench Montana is an American rapper and singer of Moroccan and Somali descent. He is the founder of Cocaine City Records.-Background:Karim Kharbouch, better known by his stage name French Montana, was born in Rabat, Morocco...
, rapper.
External links
- The Mott Haven Herald - produced by the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism
- Forgotten-NY Discussion on Mott Haven
- History of Morrisania
- Pictures of Mott Haven Historic Districts
- http://www.bronxmall.com/commboards/needscb1.html Historical and demographic information on Mott Haven from Community Board 1