Historical Trends in Boston Neighborhoods
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Produced by the BPDA Research Division: Alvaro Lima – Director Jonathan Lee – Deputy Director Christina Kim – Research Manager Phillip Granberry – Senior Researcher/Demographer Matthew Resseger – Senior Researcher/Economist Kevin Kang – Research Associate Kevin Wandrei – Research Assistant Avanti Krovi — Research Assistant Interns: Jing Chen, Cyan O’Garro, Alissa Zimmer, Zhehui Zheng The BPDA Research Division strives to understand the current environment of the city to produce quality research and targeted information that will inform and benefit the residents and businesses of Boston. The Division conducts research on Boston’s economy, population, and commercial markets for all departments of the BPDA, the City of Boston, and related organizations. The information provided in this report is the best available at the time of its publication. All or partial use of this report must be cited. Our preferred citation is as follows: Boston Planning and Development Agency Research Division, December, 2017 More research produced by the Boston Planning and Development Agency can be found on the BPDA Research Website: Research Publications Research requests can be made through the BPDA Research Division’s Research Inquiries. 2 . Population . Housing . Age Distribution . Race/Ethnicity . Nativity . Educational Attainment . Labor Force 3 . This report uses the 1950-2000 Decennial Censuses for historical data. In recent data, population and housing counts come from the 2010 Decennial Census while the distribution of demographic attributes come from the 2006-2010 and 2011-2015 5-year American Community Surveys. This report applies 2010 Census tract-approximations of neighborhood boundaries to Census data from 1950 to 2015 in order to compare consistent geographies over time. Note that some smaller neighborhoods are not distinguishable in tract-level data. Chinatown and the Leather District are included here with Downtown. Bay Village is included with the South End. The Harbor Islands are not included in the graphs, but are described in a table in the last section of the report. For a full description of the methodology, please see Historical Boston in Context: Neighborhoods 1950- 2015 available on the BPDA website. 1. Boston’s population reached its peak in 1950, with just over 800,000 residents . Like many major U.S. cities, Boston experienced significant decline in the post-World War II era. By 1980, Boston’s population fell to under 563,000 residents . Since 1980, Boston’s population grew by 18%, with the 2010 Census marking the first time since 1970 that Boston’s population exceeded 600,000 people Boston's Population (1900-2015) 850,000 801,444 800,000 781,188 770,816 750,000 748,060 697,197 700,000 670,585 669,469 650,000 641,071 617,594 600,000 562,994 589,141 560,892 574,823 550,000 500,000 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2015 6 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1900-2010 Decennial Census, 2015 American Community Survey, BPDA Research Division Analysis . Boston’s population declined by 238,450 people from 1950 to 1980. Roxbury, Dorchester, South End, South Boston, and East Boston accounted for 75% of the city’s population loss. Dorchester remained the largest neighborhood, but Brighton became second largest after Roxbury’s population loss. Boston Population by Neighborhood 1950 & 1980 Dorchester 162,139 Roxbury 101,326 South Boston 53,463 Jamaica Plain 52,753 Brighton 51,458 East Boston 51,152 South End 49,753 Charlestown 31,332 Roslindale 28,801 West Roxbury 27,066 Hyde Park 26,128 Fenway 25,804 Mattapan 23,840 Mission Hill 22,219 Back Bay 21,228 North End 16,087 Allston 15,719 Beacon Hill 14,277 West End 12,806 Downtown/Chinatown 7,174 Longwood 2,592 South Boston Waterfront 2,183 - 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 120,000 140,000 160,000 180,000 1980 1950 7 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1950 & 1980 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis . Roxbury lost 50,000 people and Dorchester lost almost 38,000 people from 1950 to 1980. West Roxbury, Hyde Park, Downtown, Fenway, Longwood, and Allston gained population 1950 to 1980. Change in Population 1950 to 1980 Downtown/Chinatown 9,729 Hyde Park 9,457 Fenway 6,406 West Roxbury 5,729 Allston 4,042 Longwood South Boston Waterfront Mattapan Roslindale Back Bay Brighton Beacon Hill Mission Hill East Boston West End North End Charlestown Jamaica Plain -13,513 South Boston -17,803 South End -18,152 Dorchester -37,650 Roxbury -50,074 -60,000 -50,000 -40,000 -30,000 -20,000 -10,000 0 10,000 20,000 8 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1950 & 1980 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis . The small neighborhoods of Longwood and Downtown/Chinatown had large percentage gains 1950 to 1980, while the West End and South Boston Waterfront had even larger percentage losses. The larger neighborhoods of Charlestown, Roxbury, and the South End also lost over 50% of their population. 1950 to 1980 Percentage Changes in Population Longwood 19.8% Downtown/Chinatown 16.3% Hyde Park 16.2% West Roxbury 15.8% Fenway 3.1% Allston 0.3% Brighton -3.8% Roslindale -4.2% Mattapan -4.2% Back Bay -13.6% Beacon Hill -25.5% Boston -29.8% Jamaica Plain -30.0% Dorchester -32.5% Mission Hill -36.4% East Boston -37.1% South Boston -44.6% North End -47.1% South End -51.6% Roxbury -57.0% Charlestown -57.3% West End -66.8% South Boston Waterfront -67.3% -80% -70% -60% -50% -40% -30% -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% 30% 9 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1950 & 1980 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis . Boston’s population began to grow again after 1980. Dorchester grew to 114,000 people by 2010, still below the 162,000 population of 1950. Roxbury grew to 51,000 people to resume its place as Boston’s second largest neighborhood. Boston Population by Neighborhood, 1980 & 2010 Dorchester 114,249 Brighton 52,685 Roxbury 49,111 East Boston 40,508 Jamaica Plain 35,541 Fenway 33,895 Hyde Park 32,317 South Boston 31,110 West Roxbury 30,445 South End 29,612 Roslindale 26,368 Mattapan 22,500 Allston 22,312 Mission Hill 16,874 Back Bay 16,622 Charlestown 16,439 Downtown/Chinatown 15,992 Beacon Hill 9,023 North End 8,608 West End 5,423 Longwood 4,861 South Boston Waterfront 2,564 - 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 120,000 1980 2010 Census 10 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1980 & 2010 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis . East Boston, Downtown/Chinatown, and Fenway had the largest absolute gains in population from 1980 to 2010. Back Bay, Beacon Hill, and Jamaica Plain had the largest losses in population. 1980-2010 Population Change East Boston 8,330 Downtown/Chinatown 7,650 Fenway 7,281 Allston 6,551 Roxbury 5,528 South End 5,511 Dorchester 4,779 Brighton 3,182 Charlestown 3,075 Mission Hill 2,739 Hyde Park 1,968 South Boston Waterfront 1,851 Longwood 1,756 South Boston 1,503 West End 1,166 North End 100 Mattapan -327 West Roxbury -888 Roslindale -1,232 Jamaica Plain -1,382 Beacon Hill -1,614 Back Bay -1,714 -4,000 -2,000 0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 11 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1980 & 2010 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis . The South Boston Waterfront and Downtown had small residential populations that have grown rapidly since 1980. Longwood, Allston, the West End, and Fenway also had large percentage gains in population. 1980 to 2010 Percentage Change in Population South Boston Waterfront 260% Downtown/Chinatown 92% Longwood 57% Allston 42% West End 27% Fenway 27% East Boston 26% Charlestown 23% South End 23% Mission Hill 19% Roxbury 13% Boston 10% Hyde Park 6% Brighton 6% South Boston 5% Dorchester 4% North End 1% Mattapan -1% West Roxbury -3% Jamaica Plain -4% Roslindale -4% Back Bay -9% Beacon Hill -15% -50% 0% 50% 100% 150% 200% 250% 300% 12 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1980 & 2010 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis . In 2010, Boston as a whole was at 80% of its 1950 population. Downtown is at almost two and a half times its 1950 residential population. Roxbury and the West End are at about half of their 1950 populations. 2010 Neighborhood Population as Ratio of 1950 Population 2.50 2.2 2.00 1.50 1.3 1.2 1.00 0.8 0.50 0.5 0.4 0.00 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 Boston Downtown/Chinatown Fenway/Longwood Roxbury Hyde Park West End Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1950-2010 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis 13 . By 2010, Boston had rebounded to 110% of its 1980 population. The South Boston Waterfront is almost four times as populous as in 1980, and Downtown/Chinatown is almost twice as populous. Beacon Hill has lost population and is only at 85% of its 1980 level. 2010 Neighborhood Population as Ratio of 1980 Population 4.00 3.6 3.50 3.00 2.50 2.00 1.92 1.50 1.26 1.10 1.00 0.85 0.50 0.00 1980 1990 2000 2010 Boston Beacon Hill Charlestown Downtown/Chinatown East Boston South Boston Waterfront 14 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1980-2010 Decennial Censuses, BPDA Research Division Analysis 15 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1950, 1980 & 2010 Decennial Census, BPDA Research Division Analysis 2. From 1950 to 1980, the number of occupied housing units in Boston remained roughly the same, despite the decline in population. From 1980 to 2015, occupied housing units rose by 43,000 units, an increase of almost 20%.