Harlem Lost 10K Black Residents, Gained 18K Whites This Decade

HARLEM, NY — Harlem gained more than 18,000 white residents since 2010 while losing thousands of Black and Hispanic people, confirming what many in the neighborhood have known for years: gentrification is underway.

Across East, Central and West Harlem, the neighborhood's Black population declined by 10,805 people between 2010 and 2020, according to newly released data from last year's census. The number of Hispanic people dropped by 2,015.

Meanwhile, the number of white residents increased by 18,754. Harlem's population grew significantly overall, from about 306,000 in 2010 to 326,500 in 2020 — an increase of 6.6 percent.

Those demographic patterns were largely consistent in each part of Harlem, according to the data, which breaks the neighborhood down into subsections. (The census was taken in April 2020, meaning it may not capture some changes brought about by the pandemic.)

Keep reading for an analysis of each trend, including interactive maps. (The maps display best on a web browser.)

Increase in white residents

The section of Harlem with the biggest net increase in white residents was Central Harlem North, spanning from 126th Street up through the Polo Grounds Houses on the Harlem River, which gained 4,584 white residents.

Meanwhile, Hamilton Heights-Sugar Hill had the biggest increase in white residents as a share of its overall population, growing from 11 to 19 percent white.

Overall, Harlem's white population grew from about 11 to 16 percent of all residents.

Black population loss

Harlem may be the most famous African American neighborhood in the nation, but it has not been majority-Black since 2000. In the past decade, that population has continued to shrink, according to the 2020 numbers.

Central Harlem South saw the biggest drop in Black residents since 2010, at more than 3,900. It also had the biggest proportional decline, going from 56 to 43 percent Black — a 13 percent drop.

The smallest loss of Black residents happened in Manhattanville-West Harlem, where the population shrunk by 798 people, or about 3 percent.

Harlem's Black population loss was not as severe as parts of Brooklyn, like Bedford-Stuyvesant, which lost a combined 22,000 Black people since 2010, the data shows. Meanwhile, areas that saw large gains in Black residents included Canarsie in Brooklyn and Morrisania in the Bronx.

Black people no longer biggest group

Another takeaway from the data: Black residents are no longer even the biggest racial group in Harlem, having been overtaken by Hispanic/Latino people.

Black people now make up 36.9 percent of Harlem, compared to 40.6 for Latinos. In 2020, Black residents held the plurality at 42.9, followed by Latinos at 40.6.

Things look different when predominantly Latino East Harlem is excluded, however. Looking only at Central Harlem, West Harlem and Hamilton Heights, Black residents remain the biggest group at 42.4 percent.

Editor's note: The maps in this story are meant to help with visualization and may not include slight changes to neighborhood boundaries made in the 2020 census count. For a look at the exact boundaries to which the data corresponds, click here.

This is the first in a series of articles breaking down insights from the 2020 Census in Harlem. To stay on top of future installments, subscribe to the newsletter from Harlem Patch.