Eastchester, Bronx

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eastchester is a neighborhood in the northeasternmost corner of the New York City borough of the Bronx, containing a predominantly working-class African American and West Indian population. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 12.

It has the same name as a modern-day town located approximately 5 miles to the north, as the neighborhood was included in the Town of Eastchester's extent until the late 1800s upon annexation by the City of New York. The modern-day city of Mount Vernon, located right across the city line and bordering the Eastchester neighborhood, was also once part of the town. While Mount Vernon has developed along similar lines as the neighborhood of Eastchester, the modern-day Town of Eastchester (i.e. north of Mount Vernon) is markedly more affluent.

233rd Street and Boston Road are the major thoroughfares in Eastchester. Intersecting both of these streets, Dyre Avenue is the neighborhood's main commercial strip.

Since the mid-20th Century, the neighborhood's name began to decline in currency, meaning that in recent years residents have not really been cognizant about living in a neighborhood called "Eastchester." This is perhaps due to confusion with Eastchester Road, a thoroughfare which runs through other parts of the Bronx, or with the actual Town of Eastchester in Westchester County. It is more common to hear the Eastchester neighborhood described as "east of White Plains Road", "south of Mount Vernon", "near Pelham", "East 233rd Street", etc.