Allerton, Bronx
Encyclopedia
Allerton is a working class neighborhood geographically located in the east Bronx
borough of New York City
in the United States
. It is named in honor of Isaac Allerton
, a passenger on the Mayflower, who is listed at the memorial at Plymouth Rock
. It consists of both the Bronxdale and Laconia neighborhoods. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 11
. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are: East Gun Hill Road to the north, IRT Dyre Avenue Line
to the east, Pelham Parkway south, and Bronx River Parkway
to the west. White Plains Road is the primary thoroughfare through Allerton. The local subway is the 2 line, operating along White Plains Road. Zip codes include 10467. The area is patrolled by the 49th Precinct located at 2121 Eastchester Avenue in the Morris Park
section of the Bronx.
residents. Primarily a commercial avenue west of Laconia Avenue, the geographic boundary between the Jewish and Italians was Bronxwood Avenue and Boston Post Road
. Bordering the largely Jewish Pelham Parkway
to the southern extreme of Williamsbridge
, the area east of Boston Post Road was predominantly post-war immigrant Italian and to the west an older Jewish community. Mixed in were residents representing earlier 19th and 20th century migrations from Manhattan
, largely of Irish
and English-Irish extraction. The arrival of West Indians
in the 1980s marked the transition, north of Allerton Avenue, from a distinctly Italian area to a West Indian one. West of Bronxwood Avenue, the arrival of Dominicans
concurrently marked the end of the Jewish community north of Allerton Avenue (Laconia). Today, the area south of Allerton Avenue and east of Bronxwood Avenue has a large population of Italian-Americans and Albanian-Americans, as well as Asians, Hispanics, West-Indians, and other groups.
Four NYCHA developments are located in Allerton.
Bronxdale is the southern part of Allerton. It has a population over 20,000. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: Allerton Avenue to the north, Esplanade Avenue to the east, Pelham Parkway
to the south, and the Bronx River Parkway
to the west. Bronxdale includes the Pelham Parkway Houses and Boston Road Plaza.
Laconia
Laconia is the northern part of Allerton. It has a population under 25,000. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: East Gun Hill Road
to the north, the IRT Dyre Avenue Line
to the east, Allerton Avenue to the south, and Bronxwood Avenue to the west. Laconia includes the Eastchester Houses.
Olinville
Olinville is the northwestern part of Allerton. Residences include the Parkside Housing Projects. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are; East Gun Hill Road to the north, Bronxwood Avenue to the east, Allerton Avenue to the south, and the Bronx River Parkway to the west.
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...
borough of 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...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is named in honor of Isaac Allerton
Isaac Allerton
Isaac Allerton was one of the original Pilgrim fathers who came on the Mayflower to settle the Plymouth Colony in 1620. Allerton is an ancestor to Presidents of the United States Zachary Taylor and Franklin D. Roosevelt....
, a passenger on the Mayflower, who is listed at the memorial at Plymouth Rock
Plymouth Rock
Plymouth Rock is the traditional site of disembarkation of William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims who founded Plymouth Colony in 1620. It is an important symbol in American history...
. It consists of both the Bronxdale and Laconia neighborhoods. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 11
Bronx Community Board 11
Bronx Community Board 11 is a local government unit of the City of New York , which encompasses the neighborhoods of Allerton, Bronx Park East, Indian Village, Morris Park, Olinville, Pelham Gardens, Pelham Parkway, Van Nest and Westchester Heights in the borough of the Bronx...
. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are: East Gun Hill Road to the north, IRT Dyre Avenue Line
IRT Dyre Avenue Line
The IRT Dyre Avenue Line is a New York City Subway rapid transit line as part of the A Division . It is a branch of the IRT White Plains Road Line serving passengers in the northeastern section of the Bronx...
to the east, Pelham Parkway south, and Bronx River Parkway
Bronx River Parkway
The Bronx River Parkway is a long parkway in downstate New York. It is named for the nearby Bronx River, which it parallels. The southern terminus of the parkway is at Story Avenue near Bruckner Expressway in the Bronx neighborhood of Soundview...
to the west. White Plains Road is the primary thoroughfare through Allerton. The local subway is the 2 line, operating along White Plains Road. Zip codes include 10467. The area is patrolled by the 49th Precinct located at 2121 Eastchester Avenue in the Morris Park
Morris Park, Bronx
Morris Park is a neighborhood in the Bronx borough of New York City . The neighborhood is part of Community Board 11 in the East Bronx. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: Pelham Parkway to the north, the Amtrak Northeast Corridor tracks to the east and south, and...
section of the Bronx.
History
Allerton Avenue was ethnically divided in the 1950s through the 1980s by a distinct separation of Jewish and ItalianItalian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
residents. Primarily a commercial avenue west of Laconia Avenue, the geographic boundary between the Jewish and Italians was Bronxwood Avenue and Boston Post Road
Boston Post Road
The Boston Post Road was a system of mail-delivery routes between New York City and Boston, Massachusetts that evolved into the first major highways in the United States.The three major alignments were the Lower Post Road The Boston Post Road was a system of mail-delivery routes between New York...
. Bordering the largely Jewish Pelham Parkway
Pelham Parkway
The Bronx and Pelham Parkway is a parkway in the borough of the Bronx in New York City. Despite the parkway moniker, Pelham Parkway is a local street, with two main roadways , and two service roads. Like other parkways in New York City, commercial traffic is disallowed, and is redirected to the...
to the southern extreme of Williamsbridge
Williamsbridge, Bronx
Williamsbridge is a working class neighborhood geographically located in the northeast Bronx borough of New York City in the United States. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 12. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: East 222nd Street to the north, Boston...
, the area east of Boston Post Road was predominantly post-war immigrant Italian and to the west an older Jewish community. Mixed in were residents representing earlier 19th and 20th century migrations from Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, largely of Irish
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and English-Irish extraction. The arrival of West Indians
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
in the 1980s marked the transition, north of Allerton Avenue, from a distinctly Italian area to a West Indian one. West of Bronxwood Avenue, the arrival of Dominicans
Dominican American
A Dominican American is any American who has origins in the Dominican Republic.Immigration records of Dominicans in the United States date from the late 19th century, and New York City has had a Dominican community since the 1930s...
concurrently marked the end of the Jewish community north of Allerton Avenue (Laconia). Today, the area south of Allerton Avenue and east of Bronxwood Avenue has a large population of Italian-Americans and Albanian-Americans, as well as Asians, Hispanics, West-Indians, and other groups.
Land use and terrain
Allerton is dominated by multi-unit homes of various types. There are also some tenements scattered across the neighborhood, primarily within five blocks of the El on White Plains Road. The total land area is roughly two square miles. The area is low and flat.Demographics
Allerton has a population of almost 50,000, which are mostly Hispanic (Puerto Rican). Bronxdale has a population over 20,000 and Laconia has a population under 25,000. The neighborhood is now predominantly Hispanic south of Allerton Avenue (Bronxdale) and Black north of Allerton Avenue (Laconia). A smaller longstanding Italian and immigrant Albanian population exist east of White Plains Road primarily in Bronxdale near Esplanade Avenue. The majority of residents rent. Under 20% of the population lives below the poverty line in Bronxdale while over 20% of the population lives below the poverty line in Laconia.Four NYCHA developments are located in Allerton.
- Boston Road Plaza; one, 20-story building
- Eastchester Gardens; ten buildings, 7 and 8-stories tall
- Parkside Houses; 14 buildings, 6, 7, 14 and 15-stories tall
- Pelham Parkway Houses; twenty-three, 6-story buildings
Subsections
BronxdaleBronxdale is the southern part of Allerton. It has a population over 20,000. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: Allerton Avenue to the north, Esplanade Avenue to the east, Pelham Parkway
Pelham Parkway
The Bronx and Pelham Parkway is a parkway in the borough of the Bronx in New York City. Despite the parkway moniker, Pelham Parkway is a local street, with two main roadways , and two service roads. Like other parkways in New York City, commercial traffic is disallowed, and is redirected to the...
to the south, and the Bronx River Parkway
Bronx River Parkway
The Bronx River Parkway is a long parkway in downstate New York. It is named for the nearby Bronx River, which it parallels. The southern terminus of the parkway is at Story Avenue near Bruckner Expressway in the Bronx neighborhood of Soundview...
to the west. Bronxdale includes the Pelham Parkway Houses and Boston Road Plaza.
Laconia
Laconia is the northern part of Allerton. It has a population under 25,000. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: East Gun Hill Road
Gun Hill Road (Bronx)
Gun Hill Road is a major thoroughfare in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The road stretches for 3.5 miles in Woodlawn and Morris Park. Gun Hill Road begins at Stillwell Avenue in Morris Park near the Hutchinson River Parkway exit and comes to an end at the Mosholu Parkway in Woodlawn...
to the north, the IRT Dyre Avenue Line
IRT Dyre Avenue Line
The IRT Dyre Avenue Line is a New York City Subway rapid transit line as part of the A Division . It is a branch of the IRT White Plains Road Line serving passengers in the northeastern section of the Bronx...
to the east, Allerton Avenue to the south, and Bronxwood Avenue to the west. Laconia includes the Eastchester Houses.
Olinville
Olinville is the northwestern part of Allerton. Residences include the Parkside Housing Projects. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are; East Gun Hill Road to the north, Bronxwood Avenue to the east, Allerton Avenue to the south, and the Bronx River Parkway to the west.
Schools
- PS 41: Gun Hill Road (Olinville Av and Rosewood St)
- PS 76: Bennington (Adee and Bronxwood Avs)
- PS 96: Richard Rodgers (Waring and Barker Avs)
- PS 89: Williamsbridge Middle School (Mace Ave and Williamsbridge Road)
- IS 322: Aspire Preparatory (Mace and Wallace Ave)
- IS 326: Bronx Green Middle School (Mace and Wallace Ave)
- IS 468: Pelham Academy of Academics and Community Engagement (Mace and Wallace Ave)
- Christopher Columbus High School (920 astor Ave.)
Transportation
- Bx8: to 225th St station225th Street (IRT White Plains Road Line)225th Street is a local station on the IRT White Plains Road Line of the New York City Subway. Located in Wakefield, Bronx at the intersection of 225th Street and White Plains Road, it is served by the 2 train at all times, and the 5 train during rush hours in the peak direction.This elevated...
or Locust PointLocust Point, BronxLocust Point is a small, peninsular neighborhood in the south eastern portion of the New York City Borough of the Bronx. It is bounded by Harding Avenue on the north, the Throggs Neck Bridge to the east, and Eastchester Bay. The area comprises single-family houses, populated by ethnically Irish,...
(via Williamsbridge Rd) - Bx25/26: to Lehman CollegeLehman CollegeLehman College is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, USA. Founded in 1931 as the Bronx campus of Hunter College, the school became an independent college within the City University in 1968. The college is named after Herbert Lehman, a former New York governor,...
or Co-op CityCo-op City, BronxCo-op City , located in the Baychester section of the Borough of the Bronx in northeast New York City, is one of the largest cooperative housing developments in the world. Situated at the intersection of Interstate 95 and the Hutchinson River Parkway, the community is part of Bronx Community Board 10...
(via Allerton Av) - Bx28: to Co-op CityCo-op City, BronxCo-op City , located in the Baychester section of the Borough of the Bronx in northeast New York City, is one of the largest cooperative housing developments in the world. Situated at the intersection of Interstate 95 and the Hutchinson River Parkway, the community is part of Bronx Community Board 10...
or FordhamFordham, BronxFordham is a neighborhood of New York City, United States, located in the West Bronx. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 5. It is bordered by Fordham Road to the north, Webster Avenue to the east, East 183rd Street to the south, and Jerome Avenue to the west...
(via Gun Hill Road) - Bx39: to Wakefield 241 Street station or Clason's Point (via White Plains Rd)
- Bee-Line 60: to White PlainsWhite Plains, New YorkWhite Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
- Bee-Line 61: to Port ChesterPort Chester, New YorkPort Chester is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The village is part of the town of Rye. As of the 2010 census, Port Chester had a population of 28,967...
- Bee-Line 62 Limited: to White PlainsWhite Plains, New YorkWhite Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
- Gun Hill Road (IRT White Plains Road Line)Gun Hill Road (IRT White Plains Road Line)Gun Hill Road is an express station on the IRT White Plains Road Line of the New York City Subway. Located in the Bronx at the intersection of Gun Hill and White Plains Roads, it is served by the 2 train at all times while the 5 train provides additional rush hour service in the peak direction.This...
(2, 5) - Gun Hill Road (IRT Dyre Avenue Line)Gun Hill Road (IRT Dyre Avenue Line)Gun Hill Road is a station on the IRT Dyre Avenue Line of the New York City Subway, located at the intersection of Gun Hill Road and Seymour Avenue in the Baychester and Allerton sections of The Bronx...
(5) - Burke Avenue (IRT White Plains Road Line)Burke Avenue (IRT White Plains Road Line)Burke Avenue is a local station on the IRT White Plains Road Line of the New York City Subway. Located in the Bronx at the intersection of Burke Avenue and White Plains Road, it is served by the 2 train at all times, and the 5 train during rush hours in peak direction.This elevated station, opened...
(2, 5) - Allerton Avenue (IRT White Plains Road Line)Allerton Avenue (IRT White Plains Road Line)Allerton Avenue is a local station on the IRT White Plains Road Line of the New York City Subway. Located in the shopping district of Allerton, Bronx at Allerton Avenue and White Plains Road, it is served by the 2 train at all times, and the 5 train during rush hours in the peak direction.This...
(2, 5)