The Black community is one of the fastest growing communities in America this decade.
There are now 42 million people who identify as Black or African American living in America, making up 12% of the total population. According to the most recent American Community Survey, the Black population in Pennsylvania is 1,353,424 – at 10.6% of the total population of Pennsylvania.
The percentage growth of Blacks in America is the third largest percentage change for any race according to the Census’s race and ethnicity definition. As most scholars and historians agree, an increase in the diversity in America is a good thing.
We agree.
But how has the increase impacted Pennsylvania? Which cities and towns in Pennsylvania have seen the greatest increase in its Black population?
We broke down the most recent census data to determine the cities in Pennsylvania with the largest African American population in 2018:
- Yeadon (Photos)
- Darby (Photos)
- Sharon Hill (Photos)
- Chester (Photos)
- Wilkinsburg (Photos)
- Duquesne (Photos)
- Lansdowne (Photos)
- Harrisburg (Photos)
- Coatesville (Photos)
- Philadelphia (Photos)
Yeadon took the number one over all spot for the largest Black population in Pennsylvania for 2018.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked.
To see where Pennsylvania ranked as a state on diversity, we have a ranking of the most diverse states in America.
And if you already knew these places were Black, check out the best places to live in Pennsylvania or the most diverse places in Pennsylvania.
How We Determined The Cities In Pennsylvania With The Largest Black Population For 2018
We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the census. So that’s where we went to get the breakdown of race across Pennsylvania.
That lead us to the Census’s most recently available data, the 2012-2016 American Community Survey data from the US Census.
Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:
- Hispanic or Latino
- White alone*
- Black or African American alone*
- American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
- Asian alone*
- Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
- Some other race alone*
- Two or more races*
Our particular column of interest here was the number of people who identified as Black or African American.
We limited our analysis to non-CDPs with a population greater than 5,000 people. That left us with 189 cities.
We then calculated the percent of residents that are Black or African American. The percentages ranked from 89.4% to 0.0%.
Finally, we ranked each city based on the percent of Black population with a higher score being more Black than a lower score. Yeadon took the distinction of being the most Black, while Fox Chapel was the least African American city.
Read on for more information on how the cities in Pennsylvania ranked by population of African American residents or, for a more general take on diversity in America, head over to our ranking of the most diverse cities in America.
1. Yeadon
Population: 11,506% African American: 89.39%
# Of African American Residents: 10,285
Percent Change Since 2010: -0.62%
2. Darby
Population: 10,677% African American: 80.4%
# Of African American Residents: 8,584
Percent Change Since 2010: 5.44%
3. Sharon Hill
Population: 5,691% African American: 71.08%
# Of African American Residents: 4,045
Percent Change Since 2010: 36.24%
4. Chester
Population: 34,056% African American: 69.37%
# Of African American Residents: 23,624
Percent Change Since 2010: -14.08%
5. Wilkinsburg
Population: 15,797% African American: 61.35%
# Of African American Residents: 9,691
Percent Change Since 2010: -7.96%
6. Duquesne
Population: 5,534% African American: 57.55%
# Of African American Residents: 3,185
Percent Change Since 2010: 12.46%
7. Lansdowne
Population: 10,621% African American: 53.53%
# Of African American Residents: 5,685
Percent Change Since 2010: 36.3%
8. Harrisburg
Population: 49,160% African American: 48.6%
# Of African American Residents: 23,891
Percent Change Since 2010: -8.92%
9. Coatesville
Population: 13,132% African American: 46.25%
# Of African American Residents: 6,073
Percent Change Since 2010: 7.56%
10. Philadelphia
Population: 1,559,938% African American: 41.55%
# Of African American Residents: 648,187
Percent Change Since 2010: 0.17%
There You Have It – Black Populations Across Pennsylvania
If you’re looking for a breakdown of African American populations across Pennsylvania according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.
If you’re curious enough, here are the least African American places in Pennsylvania:
- Fox Chapel
- Palmerton
- Blakely
For more Pennsylvania reading , check out:
- These Are The 10 Dumbest Cities In Pennsylvania
- These Are The 10 Snobbiest Cities In Pennsylvania
- These Are The 10 Safest Places In Pennsylvania
