The History Of: Harlem

Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, long known as a major African-American residential, cultural, and business center.

In 1658 the Dutch, under the leadership of Peter Stuyvesant, were the first Europeans to settle in Harlem. They named the area New Haarlem, after the Dutch city of Haarlem. Peter Stuyvesant

From the late 1700’s to the mid 1800’s, Harlem was a thriving agricultural community with many large country estates including Hamilton Grange, the estate of Alexander Hamilton. Dutch Settlement – Harlem (1700’s)

Hamilton Grange

Between 1850 and 1870 the soil in Harlem became depleted and crop yields fell. As a result many of the large estates were auctioned off. Harlem became so impoverished that it was taken over by the city of New York in 1873. Poverty stricken Harlem in 1873

The New York and Harlem Railroad was established in 1831 to link the city with the suburbs. When elevated railroads extending into Harlem were completed in 1889, urban development occurred rapidly. New town houses and apartment buildings were rushed into construction and it was thought that Harlem would become the center of fashion, wealth, and culture. The New York and Harlem Railroad

Elevated Train Construction The Harlem Opera House New Apartment Houses (1900)

During the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, large numbers of the black population moved from the south to northern cities such as New York. What do you think would cause this mass migration into northern cities?

The migration of record numbers of blacks to northern cities was caused by bigotry and racial violence in the south along with opportunities for employment in the war industries of the north at the beginning of World War I. Harlem at the beginning of the "Great Migration" of African-Americans to Harlem, about 1915-1920. The sign reads: "APARTMENTS TO LET. For Respectable Colored Families Only" Harlem - 1920

Over-building and a delay in the construction of the subway led to a real estate market crash in the early 1900’s. A black entrepreneur named Philip Payton, Jr. founded the Afro-American Realty Company. He began buying abandoned properties and encouraged blacks to move north into Harlem. Racial tension due to anti-black riots that occurred in 1900 and 1905 also contributed to the migration of the black population into Harlem. Philip Payton, Jr.

At first, the white residents of Harlem resisted the movement of blacks into Harlem by refusing to sell or rent to them. This strategy failed because black businessmen continued to offer low rents to the black community. By 1920, Central Harlem was a predominantly black neighborhood.

1930 1920 1911

During the 1920’s and 30’s, Harlem flourished with cultural and artistic expression. This period became known as… During this time black political leaders and artists used their creativity to show America and the world that Blacks were intellectual, artistic and humane and should be treated with respect and equality.

Although night clubs such as The Cotton Club, The Apollo Theater and The Savoy featured black entertainers, the audience was made up of wealthy white patrons from outside of Harlem, black customers were excluded. Black entertainers and workers were paid wages far below their white counterparts or were not even paid at all.

Musicians Bessie Smith Cab Calloway Louis Armstrong Billy Holiday Dizzie Gillespie Duke Ellington Count Basie Fats Waller

Intellectuals Charles S. Johnson Sociologist W.E.B. DuBois Civil Rights Activist Alain Locke-Philosopher Father of the Harlem Renaissance Carter G. Woodson Historian Marcus Garvey Jr. Publisher/Journalist

Artists William H. Johnson Chain Gang Village Houses Aaron Douglas Song of the Towers Into Human Bondage

Writers and Poets Countee Cullen Poet Dorothy West Writer Georgia Douglass Johnson Poet Sterling A. Brown Writer/Poet

One of the most important writers and thinkers of the Harlem Renaissance was Langston Hughes. Hughes's creative genius was influenced by his life in Harlem. His literary works helped shape American literature and politics. Hughes, like others active in the Harlem Renaissance, had a strong sense of racial pride. Through his poetry, novels, plays, essays, and children's books, he promoted equality, condemned racism and injustice, and celebrated African American culture, humor, and spirituality.