Neighborhoods

Harlem is the area North of 96th Street on the East side of Manhattan, North of 110th Street in the center of Manhattan, and North of 125 Street on the West side. It was primarily farmland until the 1880s, when the elevated railroads reached 125th street. Black New Yorker’s began moving to Harlem after anti-black riots in the early 1900s, and black immigrants joined them soon thereafter, as Harlem became a center for black culture. While living conditions were poor for much of the 20th century, including high crime rates, unemployment, drugs and overcrowding in projects, Harlem residents made tremendous contributions to the arts. Famous venues included the Cotton Club, the Savoy Ballroom and the Apollo Theater. Famous residents have included F. Scott Fitzgerald, George and Ira Gershwin, Alexander Hamilton, Scott Joplin, Harry Houdini, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Langston Hughes, Zora Neal Hurston, Ralph Ellison, Malcolm X, Sugar Ray Robinson, Tupac Shakur, Kurtis Blow, P.Diddy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. In recent years, crime had dropped and new retail and residential development has increased. Harlem is home to the Apollo Theater, the Museum of the City of New York, and Mount Sinai Hospital.