The West End is a

neighborhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area, ...

in the southwestern part of

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

in the region often referred to as the South Side. Its boundaries are delineated by Westminster Street to the north, Huntington Avenue to the south, Elmwood Avenue to the east and the railroad tracks with Route 10 to the west. Cranston Street runs through the center of West End, past the

Cranston Street Armory The Cranston Street Armory is an historic building in the Broadway–Armory Historic District of Providence, Rhode Island. It was built in 1907 at a cost of $650,000.00. The building was occupied by the Rhode Island National Guard from its openi ...

which has given the neighborhood the alternative name of the "Armory District."

History

The first settlement of the area took place shortly after

King Philip's War King Philip's War (sometimes called the First Indian War, Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, Pometacomet's Rebellion, or Metacom's Rebellion) was an armed conflict in 1675–1676 between indigenous inhabitants of New England and New England coloni ...

in the form of farming. In 1739, Obidiah Brown built the Hoyle Tavern at the intersections of Westminster and Cranston Streets, near present-day

Classical High School Classical High School, founded in 1843, is a public magnet school in the Providence School District, in Providence, Rhode Island. It was originally an all-male school but has since become co-ed. Classical's motto is ''Certare, Petere, Reperi ...

. Early settlers built houses nearby to the tavern. In the 19th century, the area developed industrially and residentially with several factories built near the now-filled Long Pond. Residential construction followed after a horse-drawn coach started serving the area in 1855 and a streetcar in 1865. North of Cranston Street developed a white middle-class neighborhood of one and two family houses, while south of it, double and triple decker houses were built to accommodate increasing numbers of Irish,

French Canadians French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...

, and African-Americans. Hudson Fur (61971)a

Following the urban decline of the 1930s, the West End has become a slowly decaying

inner city The term ''inner city'' has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Sociologists some ...

neighborhood as middle class residents left. The adjacent Huntington Industrial Park in

Olneyville Olneyville is a neighborhood in Providence, Rhode Island bordered by Atwells Avenue to the north, U.S. Route 6 to the south and Rhode Island Route 10 to the east. The Woonasquatucket River runs through the southern portion of the neighborhood. ...

had kept industry nearby, but when

Gorham Manufacturing Company The Gorham Manufacturing Company is one of the largest United States of America, American manufacturers of Sterling silver, sterling and silverplate and a foundry for bronze sculpture. History Gorham Silver was founded in Providence, Rhode Isl ...

left the area Olneyville lost importance as a freight rail hub. Further, Route 10 was constructed, physically separating the West End from the rest of the city.

Revitalization

In recent years, new residents have worked to improve and renovate the area's housing supply, particularly the more historic houses, including turning older houses into affordable rentals. For example, the

Mechanical Fabric Company The Mechanical Fabric Company is a historic factory complex on Cromwell and Sprague Streets in the West End neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. Description The complex consists of six brick buildings, arranged in roughly parallel rows in ...

between Sprague and Cromwell Streets was renovated and rebranded in 2019 as "Rooms & Works," a hybrid of residences and work spaces, including apartments, a commercial doughnut kitchen, and a brewery and bar. In 2019, the City Plan Commission granted approval for redevelopment of the former Citizens Bank Building and five adjacent lots at Canonicus Square, at the intersection of Cranston and Westminster Streets, an area considered to be the gateway to the West End. File:Mechanical Fabric Company - 55 Cromwell Street building.jpg, The

complex, now residences and work spaces File:Former Citizens Savings Bank building in Canonicus Square.jpg, The Former Citizens Savings Bank building, slated for redevelopment File:Kendrick-Tirocchi-Prentice House aka Wedding Cake House.jpg, The restored Wedding Cake House, owned by

Dirt Palace The Dirt Palace is a feminist non-profit arts space founded in 2000. The Dirt Palace is located within a re-purposed library building in the Olneyville neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island and includes living spaces, a wood shop, a print shop, ...

art collective

Demographics

As of the 1990 census, one in three residents of the West End was Hispanic, about 30 percent were Black, and 14 percent were Asian, making the West End one of the city's most diverse neighborhoods. About one in three families was living below the poverty line and 44% of residents over 25 had completed high school.Providence Neighborhoods: West End
/ref> According to the Providence Plan, a local nonprofit aimed at improving city life, half of all West End residents are

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

while 19% are

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

, 14% white, 13% Asian, and 1.6% Native American. 68% of children under the age of six speak a language other than English as their primary language.West End
/ref> The median family income is $23,346, below the citywide average of $32,058. 36.6% of families live below the poverty line while one in ten families receives some form of public assistance. Nearly one in four children under the age of six have been exposed to high levels of lead.

Schools

Gilbert_Stuart_Middle_School,_Providence_RI

Alfred Lima and Asa Messer Elementary Schools are both located in the West End area. Also, the West End Community Center, an afterschool program, is located on Bucklin Street.

References

External links