List of Italian American neighborhoods

Italian-Americans in the United States can be found in large numbers and densities in states such as New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Michigan, Florida, California, Illinois, and Massachusetts. An estimate of 20 million Americans are of Italian or Sicilian descent. New York City has by far the most Italian-Americans in one area though and is still a common destination for Italians coming over to start a new life in America.

There are also communities of Italian Americans in most major industrial cities of early 20th c. US, such as Baltimore, Maryland; Boston, Massachusetts the "North End"; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Providence, Rhode Island; St. Louis, Missouri; Chicago, IL; Cleveland, OH; Buffalo, NY; and Kansas City, Missouri. New Orleans, Louisiana was the first site of immigration of Italians and Sicilians into America in the 19th c., before Italy was a unified nation-state. This was before New York Harbor and Baltimore became the preferred destinations for Italian immigrants.

In sharp contrast to the Northeast, most of the Southern US states (exceptions being the Atlantic coast of Florida, New Orleans, and a fast-growing community in Atlanta) have very few Italian Americans residents. During the labor shortage in the 19th-early 20th centuries, planters in the Deep South did attract some Italian immigrants to work as sharecroppers, but they soon left the extreme anti-Italian discrimination and strict regimen of the plantations for towns or other states. Because of concerns about peonage and anti-Italian lynching, the Italian embassy warned Italian emigrants away from the American South.

In Kansas City, Missouri, the areas known as "North of the River" (and the former areas of "The North End" and "Northeast Kansas City") have flourished with Italian American families, mostly of Sicilian heritage, from 1st to 3rd generation.

New Italian immigrants have been entering California, specifically Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Long Beach, and Fresno but the state has Italian-American residents since the 1850s.

Since the 1950s, like many Americans, Italian Americans have moved to the cheaper, slower paced and rapidly growing Western US. They include Arizona, Colorado, Nevada (esp. Las Vegas), Oregon, Texas (mostly in Houston and Dallas areas) and Washington (esp. Seattle).

Most Italian-American organizations and demographic experts say that they leave to escape the high real estate prices, cold weather and traffic, among other reasons, in the congested Northeast and East Coast in general.

States with the highest number of Italian American communities are New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Rhode Island.

Alabama

Daphne, Alabama Prior to the 1978 annexation of the Lake Forest subdivision, Daphne was a heavily Italian community, and pre-1978 Daphne territory remains Italian, with street names such as Guarisco. The Archdiocese of Mobile considers Christ the King Parish in Daphne as an Italian-American parish

Arizona

* Maricopa County, Arizona
* Phoenix, Arizona

Arkansas

*Little Italy in unincorporated northern Pulaski County, Arkansas
*Tontitown, Arkansas

California

Southern California

*Little Italy in San Diego, California
*Long Beach, California
*Los Angeles County
*South Bay region
*Santa Monica, California
*San Pedro, Los Angeles, California
*Lincoln Heights, Los Angeles, California
*San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles
*Ventura County, California
*San Diego, California
* "Little Tuscany" of Palm Springs, California
* Palm Desert, California
*Bakersfield, California
*Fresno, California
*San Luis Obispo County, California
*Santa Barbara County, California

Northern California

*North Beach, San Francisco, California
* Alameda County, California
* Contra Costa County, California
* Marin County, California
* Napa County, California
* Sonoma County, California
* San Jose, California
* Santa Clara County, California
* Santa Cruz, California
* Monterey County, California
* San Benito County, California
* Mendocino County, California
* San Mateo County, California
* Solano County, California
* Sacramento, California
* San Joaquin County, California
* Stanislaus County, California

Colorado

* Denver in "Little Italy" in the Cherry Creek section

Connecticut

*Bridgeport, Connecticut
*Danbury, Connecticut
*East Haven, Connecticut
*Enfield, Connecticut
*Hartford, Connecticut
*Middletown, Connecticut
*New Haven, Connecticut, home of Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana, Sally's Apizza, and a vast number of other purveyors of Apizza. New Haven had a 60% population of Italian descent in the 1960 census Fact|date=May 2008
*Norwalk, Connecticut
*Waterbury, Connecticut, home of the late Italian real estate tycoon Angelina Galante DeRienzo
*Prospect, Connecticut
*West Haven, Connecticut
*Wethersfield, Connecticut

District of Columbia

* Washington, D.C. is home to 10,000 Italian Americans

Delaware

*Wilmington, Delaware
*Little Italy, Wilmington, Delaware

Florida

Mostly South Florida and the Tampa Bay Area, but also significant populations in Central Florida and the Florida Keys:
*Broward County, Florida
*Coral Gables, Florida
*Daytona Beach, Florida
*Delray Beach, Florida
*Fort Lauderdale, Florida
*Melbourne, Florida
*Miami, Florida
*Miami Beach, Florida (South Beach)
*Miami-Dade County, Florida
*Monroe County, Florida
*Orange County, Florida
*Orlando, Florida
*Palm Beach County, Florida
*Pompano Beach, Florida
*Port St. Lucie, Florida
*St. Petersburg, Florida
*Tampa, Florida
*Vero Beach, Florida
*West Palm Beach, Florida

Georgia

* Atlanta

Illinois

*Chicago, Illinois
*Armour Square, Chicago, Illinois
*South Side, Chicago, Illinois
*Little Italy in Chicago, Illinois
*Grand Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
*Montclare, Chicago, Illinois
*Taylor Street, Chicago, Illinois
*Addison, Illinois
*Chicago Heights, Illinois
*Elmwood Park, Illinois
*Franklin Park, Illinois
*Melrose Park, Illinois
*Riverton, Illinois

Indiana

* Indianapolis

Louisiana

*New Orleans, Louisiana
*Kenner, Louisiana
*Independence, Louisiana 29.5%
*Marrero, Louisiana
*Donaldsonville, Louisiana

Massachusetts

*Boston, Massachusetts
*Brockton, Massachusetts
*East Boston in Boston, Massachusetts
*The North End in Boston, Massachusetts
*East Cambridge in Cambridge, Massachusetts
*Gloucester, Massachusetts
*Medford, Massachusetts
*Revere, Massachusetts
*Saugus, Massachusetts
*Somerville, Massachusetts
*Everett, Massachusetts
*Lynn, Massachusetts
*Springfield (South-End), Massachusetts
*Lawrence, Massachusetts
*Waltham, Massachusetts
*Hyde Park in Boston, Massachusetts
* Quincy Point in Quincy, Massachusetts

Maryland

*Baltimore, Maryland
*Highlandtown in Baltimore, Maryland
*Little Italy in Baltimore, Maryland
*Locust Point in Baltimore, Maryland
*Bel Air, Maryland
*College Park, Maryland
*Edgewood, Maryland
*Elkridge, Maryland
*Essex, Maryland
*Joppatowne, Maryland
*Laurel, Maryland
*Middle River, Maryland
*Parkville, Maryland
*Perry Hall, Maryland
*Towson, Maryland

Michigan

*Detroit, Michigan

Minnesota

* Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan Area

Missouri

*The Hill, Saint Louis, Missouri -- three famous baseball figures, Yogi Berra, Harry Caray and Joe Garagiola grew up here.
*Kansas City, Missouri
*Columbia, Missouri

Nevada

*Las Vegas, Nevada

New Jersey

New Jersey municipalities with over 25% of the population identifying themselves as of Italian ancestry (in those municipalities where at least 1,000 residents identified their ancestry): [ [http://www.epodunk.com/ancestry/Italian.html Italian Communities] , accessed November 11, 2006]
*Hammonton, New Jersey 45.9% (second highest percentage for a town in the United States, behind Johnston, Rhode Island)
*Dover Beaches South, New Jersey 42.8
*Totowa, New Jersey 37.7
*South Hackensack, New Jersey 36.3 (14th highest)
*Nutley, New Jersey 36.0 (16th highest)
*West Paterson, New Jersey 34.3
*Moonachie, New Jersey 34.1
*Lyndhurst, New Jersey 33.8
*Buena, New Jersey 33.5
*Lodi, New Jersey 33.3
*Ocean Gate, New Jersey 32.5
*Carlstadt, New Jersey 31.2
*Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey 30.8
*West Long Branch, New Jersey 30.5
*Netcong, New Jersey 30.1
*Gibbstown, New Jersey 30.1
*Raritan, New Jersey 30.1
*Newfield, New Jersey 29.8
*Saddle Brook, New Jersey 29.8
*Cedar Grove, New Jersey 29.7
*Greenwich Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey 29.3
*Glendora, New Jersey 28.7
*Belleville, New Jersey 28.7
*Little Falls, New Jersey 28.6
*Kenilworth, New Jersey 28.0
*Oceanport, New Jersey 27.7
*Lavallette, New Jersey 27.7
*North Arlington, New Jersey 27.4
*Longport, New Jersey 27.3
*Folsom, New Jersey 27.3
*Port Reading, New Jersey 26.9
*Hawthorne, New Jersey 26.5
*Bloomfield, New Jersey26.4
*Rochelle Park, New Jersey 26.1
*Washington Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey 25.9
*Mystic Island, New Jersey 25.9
*Seaside Heights, New Jersey 25.7
*Berkeley, New Jersey 25.7
*Blackwood, New Jersey 25.5
*Hazlet, New Jersey 25.4
*Belford, New Jersey 25.3
*Riverdale, New Jersey 25.1
*East Rutherford, New Jersey 25.1

;Other places in New Jersey
*Newark, New Jersey - once had a third or 32% of population being of Italian descent in the 1940 census report.
**Ironbound, Newark in the Italian Down Neck section
**Seventh Avenue, Newark, New Jersey
**Roseville, Newark, New Jersey
**Broadway, Newark, New Jersey
*Trenton, New Jersey
**South Trenton, New Jersey
**East Trenton, New Jersey
*Asbury Park, New Jersey
*Atlantic City, New Jersey
**Ducktown, Atlantic City, New Jersey
*Ventnor City, New Jersey 22.8%
*Vineland, New Jersey 22.8%
*Paterson, New Jersey
**Little Italy, Paterson, New Jersey
*Bayonne, New Jersey 20.1%
*Hoboken, New Jersey
*Jersey City, New Jersey
*Elizabeth, New Jersey
*Neptune City, New Jersey
*Hackensack, New Jersey
*Orange, New Jersey
*Secaucus, New Jersey
*Rutherford, New Jersey
*Garfield, New Jersey
*Clifton, New Jersey
*Camden, New Jersey
*Forked River, New Jersey
*Rockaway, New Jersey

New York

New York State has the largest population of Italian Americans with 3.1 million people claiming Italian ancestry. The majority of Italian Americans in New York City originated from southern parts of the country, but includes other regions. In the peak of Italian immigration (1910's), NY City and Chicago according to the 1920 census each had 28 neighborhoods and census tracts over 50% being of Italian descent.

New York City

*The Bronx, New York
*East Bronx, New York
*Brooklyn, New York
*Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, New York
*Arthur Avenue, Bronx, New York (aka Little Italy of the Bronx)
*Belmont, Bronx, New York
*Morris Park, Bronx, New York Very Large Italian population
*Pelham Bay, Bronx, New York Very Large Italian population
*Ozone Park, Queens, New York (Little Italy of Queens)
*Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York
*Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, New York (Little Italy of Brooklyn)
*Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, New York
*Ridgewood, Queens, New York
*Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York
*South Brooklyn, New York
*Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York
*Woodlawn, Bronx, New York (Traditionally an Irish neighborhood with about 30-35%Italian)
*Throgs Neck, Bronx, New York
*South Bronx, New York (not since the late 1950s)
*Country Club, Bronx, New York (Very large Italian polulation)
*Queens, New York
*Middle Village, Queens, New York
*Mulberry Street (Little Italy), Manhattan, New York
*East Harlem, Manhattan, New York (The highest concentration of Italians in East Harlem can be found between Pleasant Avenue to the east, First Avenue to the west, East 114th street to the south and East 120th Street to the north.)
*Howard Beach, Queens, New York has one of the highest percentage of Italian Americans in Queens County, with about 15,000 of its 28,000 residents claiming Italian ancestry.
*Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York has the highest percentage of people claiming Italian ancestry in the county after Bensonhurst. Bensonhurst and Bay Ridge neighbor each other in south Brooklyn and the area is well known to Italian Americans across the country.
*New Dorp, Staten Island, New York
*Canarsie, Brooklyn, New York
*Gravesend, Brooklyn, New York
*Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York
*Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, New York
*Sections of Kensington and Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn
*Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York
*Midwood, Brooklyn, New York
*Greenwood Heights, Brooklyn, New York
*East New York, Brooklyn, New York
*Little Neck, Queens, New York
*Westerleigh, Staten Island, New York
*Rosedale, Queens, New York
*Belle Harbor, Queens, New York
*Glendale, Queens, New York
*Bulls Head, Staten Island, New York
*Eltingville, Staten Island, New York
*St. George, Staten Island, New York
*Floral Park, Queens, New York
*Whitestone, Queens, New York
*Staten Island : The borough is the most heavily populated percentage-wise Italian American county in the United States, with 44.55% of its 430,000 residents claiming Italian ancestry in 2000. Around 200,000 residents claim Italian heritage.

Long Island

*Long Island, New York
*Selden, New York
*Franklin Square, New York
*Lindenhurst, New York
*Oceanside, New York
*Glen Cove, New York
*Huntington, New York
*Smithtown, New York
*Port Jefferson, New York
*Shirley, New York
*Riverhead, New York
*Mastic Beach, New York
*Lynbrook, New York
*Bridgehampton, New York
*Greenport, New York
*West Islip, New York
*Long Beach, New York
*Mineola, New York
*Cedarhurst, New York
*Elmont, New York
*Massapequa Park, New York
*Massapequa, New York
*North Massapequa, New York
*West Babylon, New York
*North Babylon, New York
*Hewlett, New York
*Copiague, New York
*Patchogue, New York

Westchester County
*Yonkers, New York
*Dunwoodie, Yonkers, New York
*Mount Vernon, New York
*Eastchester, New York
*White Plains, New York
*New Rochelle, New York

Rockland County
*New City, New York
*Heritage Dr, New City, New York
*Nyack, New York
*Upper Nyack, New York
*Congers, New York

Upstate New York
*Buffalo, New York
*Schenectady, New York
*Niagara Falls, New York
*Frankfort, New York
*Utica, NY
*Geneva, NY
*Syracuse, New York
*Little Italy, Syracuse, New York
*Harriman, New York
*Monroe, New York
*Orange County
*Carmel, New York
*Mahopac, New York
*Rochester, New York
*Canandaigua, New York
*Albany, New York, the South End neighborhood
*Troy, New York, Senator Hillary Clinton has proposed a Little Italy section in the city.

Ohio

*Little Italy in Cleveland, Ohio
*Brier Hill in Youngstown, Ohio
*Lowellville, Ohio, 48.0% Italian
*Highland Heights, Ohio, 31.3% Italian
*Mayfield Heights, Ohio, 26.1% Italian
*Mayfield Village, Ohio, 25.1% Italian
*Lyndhurst, Ohio, 23.9% Italian
*Steubenville, Ohio, 19% Italian
*South Euclid, Ohio, 15.4% Italian
*Huron, Ohio, 13.1% Italian
*Richmond Heights, Ohio, 11.6% Italian
*Maple Heights, Ohio, 10.0% Italian
*Bellevue, Ohio, 9.6% Italian
*Euclid, Ohio, 9.6% Italian
*Sandusky, Ohio, 7.5% Italian
*Vermilion, Ohio, 7.4% Italian
*Akron, Ohio, 6.8% Italian
*Bedford Heights, Ohio, 5.8% Italian
*Norwalk, Ohio, 5.8% Italian

Pennsylvania

*Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: City is home to the 2nd largest Italian-American population in the U.S. according to the 2000 census.
*South Philadelphia, home to a very large community of Italian Americans
*Central South Philadelphia
*Italian Market, South Philadelphia
*Bella Vista, Philadelphia
*Girard Estate, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
*Marconi Plaza, Philadelphia
*Packer Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
*Tacony, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
*Port Richmond, Philadelphia
*Germantown, Philadelphia
*Areas of Kensington, Philadelphia and West Kensington, Philadelphia
*Sections of Southwest Philadelphia
*Sections of Northeast Philadelphia and Northwest Philadelphia
*Roseto, Pennsylvania- 49.4% of the population
*Norristown, Pennsylvania
*Aliquippa, Pennsylvania
*Ambler, Pennsylvania
*Darby, Pennsylvania
*Upper Darby, Pennsylvania
*Clifton Heights, Pennsylvania
*Ambridge, Pennsylvania
*Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
**Bloomfield, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania also current residency of Anthony Cicero
**Uptown, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
**Morningside, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
**South Hills, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
**Coraopolis, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
*Braddock, Pennsylvania
*Bridgeville, Pennsylvania
*Brockway, Pennsylvania
*Canonsburg, Pennsylvania also birth place of famous Italian-American Singer Perry Como
*Clairton, Pennsylvania
*Coatesville, Pennsylvania
*Downingtown, Pennsylvania
*Dunmore, Pennsylvania
*Ellwood City, Pennsylvania
*Easton, Pennsylvania
*Bangor, Pennsylvania
*Areas of the Coal Region, especially Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
*Scranton, Pennsylvania
*Farrell, Pennsylvania
*Harmony, Pennsylvania
*Homewood, Pennsylvania
*Hopewell, Pennsylvania
*Jessup, Pennsylvania
*Kennedy Township, Pennsylvania
*Koppel, Pennsylvania
*Midland, Pennsylvania
*New Castle, Pennsylvania (Mahoningtown)
*New Galilee, Pennsylvania
*Pittston, Pennsylvania
*Rankin, Pennsylvania
*Sharpsburg, Pennsylvania
*Stowe Township, Pennsylvania
*Washington, Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

19% of Rhode Island residents are Italian American, the greatest percentage of any state. 199,180 of Rhode Island's population of 1,048,319 claim Italian ancestry.

*Federal Hill, Providence, Rhode Island
*Providence, Rhode Island
*Cranston, Rhode Island (34.5% Italian American)
*Johnston, Rhode Island (53.6% Italian American) (Ranked #1)
*North Providence, Rhode Island (43% Italian American)
*Westerly, Rhode Island (34.2% Italian American)
*Warwick, Rhode Island (22.8%)
*Bristol, Rhode Island (21.2%)

Texas

* Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex Metropolitan Area
* Houston, Texas

Utah

* Utah Italians- an article about Italian Americans in Utah

Washington

* Seattle

West Virginia

Approximately 11% of the combined population of "Mountaineer Country", collectively the north central West Virginia Cities of Clarksburg, Fairmont and Morgantown claim Italian ancestry, mostly from Italian immigrants recruited to work in mining and glass manufacturing. [http://www.wvculture.org/arts/ethnic/mountaineer.html]
*Clarksburg, West Virginia
*Fairmont, West Virginia
*Morgantown, West Virginia

References