African American Studies Commons^™

Belton, Frank Interview 1, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

Frank Belton was raised in the Morrisania neighborhood of the South Bronx from the time that he was 9 years old. He was born in Harlem, then later his family moved around a bit before settling in a home on Chisholm Street in 1948. Although he had lived in the city when he was younger, he had his first experiences with Puerto Ricans when he moved to the South Bronx. Chisholm Street had a fairly mixed population, but his schools were mostly made up of Puerto Ricans. He says that this mixing of racial backgrounds did not affect relationships between …

Mills, Gloria Smalls, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

Mrs. Gloria Smalls Mills is a lifelong resident of the Bronx, first living in Morrisiania. Her grandparents were immigrants from Antigua and moved to Dawson Street in the Bronx. Her mother graduated High School in the 1930’s from James Monroe High School and never worked before she got married and had children. Her father is from Charleston, South Carolina.

A few years later, her family moved to Kelly Street. There were many Italians and Jewish people living in her building. However, once more African-Americans began moving into the neighborhood, they whites began leaving. Also, there was an unspoken segregation among …

Hanson, Avis Interview 2, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

Interviewee: Avis Hanson 2^nd Interview

Interviewer: Dr. Mark Naison, Natasha Lightfoot, Patricia Wright

Summarized by Alice Stryker

She begins by talking about her West Indian heritage. Her mother came from Antigua and her father came from Jamaica. Her mother and father met in New York City and got married shortly there after. The family moved to the Bronx, which she discussed in the first interview. When Avis was young, her mother sent for her aunt to live with them. However, they did not have good relations with the rest of her extended family. Her father’s Jamaican family did not …

Pruitt, James Interview 1, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

10^th Interview

Interviewee: Jim Pruitt

Interviewer: Mark Naison

No Date of Interview

Summarized by Alice Stryker

Pruitt’s family moved from Harlem to the Bronx in 1932. Both of his parents were southern and met through his mother’s brother. About 5 years after the couple was married, they moved to Prospect Ave between Home and 168^th street. When they moved to the Bronx, his father was working for the post office and for a tailor as a presser. Many of the Black men living in this neighborhood worked for the post office. Although the family and their neighbors lived …

Wade, Chrystal, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

Chrystal Wade moved to the Bronx from Harlem when she was five years old after moving from the Harlem River Drive projects to Detroit and back to New York. Chrystal’s mother gave birth to her at age 18, but she was adopted by her grandparents at age five, as they wanted to make sure she would have a good structured family life. Upon moving into a five-story walkup at 532 East 157^th Street and St. Ann’s avenue, her father and brother-in-law almost immediately had an altercation with the neighbors because her family was the second black family in the …

Smith, Candace, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

Candace Smith was born and raised in the Bronx. From what she recalls her family lived on the top story of a two family home in the Tremont neighborhood until moving to the Patterson Houses in 1957 when she was around age 8. The home in Tremont was in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood and she does not recall there being any other black families in the neighborhood. On the other hand, when they moved to the Patterson Houses, she does not recall any white families in the neighborhood there. Both of her parents had also grown up in the Bronx, …

Martin, Nicholas, Bronx African American History Project

Oral Histories

Nicholas Martin is the principle of P.S. 6 and grew up in the Hunts Point area of the Bronx. He was born in Manhattan and when he was 5 his parents moved to Fox Street in the South Bronx. His father worked on the docks. His father spoke broken English and fluent Spanish and was born in Florida. He traveled back and forth from Cuba though. His mother spoke English and Spanish fluently and was born in Puerto Rico.

He remembers Fox Street when he was growing up as lively. Children would play lots of games outside on the street. …