Elmwood, Providence, Rhode Island

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Elmwood is a neighborhood in southern Providence, Rhode Island. The triangular region is demarcated by Broad Street, Elmwood Avenue, and Interstate 95.

Prior to the 1850s, the region had been used primarily as farm land. Then, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, as the city began to expand south and west with the development of manufacturing and shipping interests, the area began to develop. In the 1840s through 1860s, as the city of Providence expanded from a population of 23,000 to past 50,000, development crept southwestward along Broad Street. As areas began to be densely populated, the remaining farms were subdivided.

The neighborhood takes its name from one of its principal developers, Joseph J. Cooke, who in 1843 purchased a large tract of farm land and named the estate "Elmwood". He and other developers sought to built a model suburban community with wide streets and shade-giving elm trees.

As public transportation improved from omnibuses (horse-drawn carriages) to horse-drawn tracked cars, and finally to electified streetcars, development began to quicken pace. A number of manufacturers moved to Elmwood, while the area near Public St, Elmwood Ave, and Potters Ave began to develop as a middle to upperclass residential neighborhood.

As the automobile came to increase in popularity, businesses in the form of car dealerships, garages, and service stations would proliferate along Elmwood Avenue. As trolley service was bustituted, Elmwood Ave was widened significantly and the elm trees Cooke planted had to be removed. These changes in streetscape change the character of the neighborhood irrevocably.

When the 1950s came, Interstate 95 was constructed, and many single-family homes were converted into apartments. Combined with the aging housing stock and traffic congestion, the neighborhood became less appealing to the middle-class, who left in large numbers during this time.

In the early and mid 1970s, spot demolition on dilapidated houses became common and Elmwood fell into disrepair, though in recent years, there have been many efforts to restore many older mansion and revitalize the neighborhood.

In 1990, the neighborhood remains one of the most ethnically, culturally, and racial diverse in the city. Four out of 10 residents were hispanic, more than one in three was African-American, 26 percent was white, 14 percent was asian, and nearly 3 percent was native american. Hispanic and asian populations have been undergoing the largest increases in recent years.

Only half of residents over 25 had completed high school, while the employment rate was 14 percent verses 9 for the city as a whole.

[edit] References

Neighborhood Profiles at providenceri.com

Neighborhoods in Providence, Rhode Island
Blackstone · Charles · College Hill · Downtown · Elmhurst · Elmwood · Federal Hill · Fox Point · Hartford · Hope · Manton · Mount Hope · Mount Pleasant · Olneyville · Silver Lake · Smith Hill · South Elmwood · Upper South Providence · Valley · Wanskuck · Wayland · West Broadway · West End