This is a study of how people from different racial and ethnic backgrounds were integrated into American cities in the late 19th Century. This was a time when black migration to Northern cities was only beginning, but immigration from Europe was in full swing. The project will investigate the extent to which these groups were clustered into separate neighborhoods or living in areas with people of other backgrounds, compare levels of residential segregation across cities, and ask how people's own background characteristics (such as age and occupation) affected the type of neighborhood where they lived. For the largest 25 cities, newly developed neighborhood maps will be used to analyze the spatial location of these areas. Most of the research will focus on 1880, a year for which data for all persons tabulated in the U.S. Census are available in computer files. A supplementary sample of men will be tracked from 1870 to 1880 to provide insights into processes of residential mobility.
This project will offer a new historical point of reference for studies of immigrant and minority groups at the beginning of the 21st century. It will have additional impact as other social scientists take advantage of the computerized map files and census data that will be assembled for this study. In addition, a web-based mapping system will make this information widely available for public use and inclusion in school curricula.
