The History Of Pelham Parkway, The Bronx

This article, brought to you by the Pelham Parkway personal injury attorneys at Banville Law, will discuss the history of this Bronx neighborhood.

Pelham Parkway: A Neighborhood Named After A Road

Pelham Parkway is a middle-class neighborhood that is located in the center of the Bronx. The neighborhood is named after a road, a road that almost didn't exist.

The Battle To Build

After New York City turned down a proposal made by a landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmstead to built a greenbelt of parks and parkways throughout the Bronx in 1877, John Mullaly decided to join in on the fight to create green spaces.

Mullaly was an editor at the New York Herald and used his connections to form the New York Park Association in 1881. Mullaly and his fellow associates used their influence to push a bill into the New York State Senate and then the New York State Assembly. In 1884, then Governor Grover Cleveland signed the New Parks Act into law.

The created park system consisted of six parks, with three parkways connecting them - including one named Pelham Parkway!

The original Pelham Parkway was completed in 1912. It was just two lanes and thanks to great forethought, it could later be expanded as building codes prevented anyone from building within 150 feet of it.

The Current Pelham Parkway

Today, the Pelham Parkway neighborhood is inhabited by about 30,000 residents and has an incredibly diverse population. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 36.2% White, 10.7%  African American, 0.2% Native American, 11.3% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.7% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 39.4% of the population.

The median household income is a little more than $48,000 and the majority of residents rent.

The neighborhood is well connected to other areas of New York City since it is served by several NYC subway stations.

The Pelham Parkway personal injury legal team at Banville Law hope that you've enjoyed this brief history of the area. If you would like additional information, read our post on local resources available for accident victims.