Race and Housing in Olmsted County
How the past affects race and housing in Olmsted county today
Overview of Olmsted
Olmsted is a small city county located in southeastern Minnesota. As of 2018, its total population is around 156,000 people. The county seat Rochester is its largest city and has a UMN campus and the Mayo Clinic headquarters. Much of Olmsted’s economy is based in the healthcare industry.
The majority of people are white (84.7%). The African American and Asian population each make up about 5.7% of the total. There are 14 times more white people than Black or Asian people.
Location of Olmsted
County seat: Rochester
Past
Native Population
For hundreds of years, the Sioux Wahpeton tribe lived on the land we currently call Olmsted. Their territory was in southern Minnesota, and the Sioux had a deep connection to the land and its resources. Their kinship with one another was a pillar in their society. In 1851, a treaty was signed between Minnesota and the Sioux, and the tribe moved farther west. The county is named after the fur trader and mayor David Olmsted. He was considered a “friend of the Indian”.
- Area that the Wahpeton lived
Native-land.ca | API Endpoint
“The title of those royal real estate dealers to the reality that they transferred was about as valid as that of Satan, the largest land speculator, to the kingdoms of the earth that he failed to trade off on a certain historic occasion” - County history book describing the land treaties with the Sioux
Source: Native Land, County History Book
Redlining in Rochester
In 1940, the federal government’s Home Owners’ Loan Corporation assigned grades to residential neighborhoods that reflected their “mortgage security”. The neighborhoods that were assigned “A” were minimal risks for mortgage lenders, and those with “D”s were “hazardous”. Quality of housing and racial and ethnic identity of residents were taken into account when assigning grades. This put housing into a white perspective and devalued other racial groups. This redlining became an obstacle against minorities who wanted to become homeowners and made inter-generational wealth building more challenging and contributes to current wealth inequalities.
Source: Mapping Inequalities
The Negro GreenBook
The Negro Green Books and TravelGuides were written to tell African Americans safe places to stay of they ever visited certain places. Several locations in Rochester were listed. In the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, they listed the Avalon Hotel, De Luxe Cabins, Samaritan, Gatewood, and the YWCA. Over a span of 20 years, there were not many locations a black tourist could go and feel safe. They were the clear minority and needed to congregate in certain places. The cluster of pins shows how difficult it was minorities to spread out. Looking back at the past, there is clear segregation and inequalities based on race.
The Avalon Hotel was a commonly listed in the Greenbooks and Travelguides. The building has since become Avalon Music
Source: New York Public Library
The Past Affecting the Present
Redlining and Property Values
In southeastern Rochester, the median property value is about $120,000 compared to western area that is around $150,000 and southern area that is over $200,000. In 1940, the southeastern area was designated as “definitely declining”, and it was more difficult to get loans for that area. The central area's median property value of $90,000 is the lowest in the area. This area was “hazardous” and rarely had loans given out. Other “hazardous” areas have median property values under $150,000, which is lower than most of the county. Low property values and bad redlining grades are correlated. Area assessments were partly based on race, and this racist judgement still affect property now. Having a lower valued home makes it more difficult to accumulate wealth and give wealth to later generations. Redlining created inequalities that have lasted almost 70 years.
Redlining and Green Books
The map above lists five locations that were considered safe for African Americans to visit in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s in Rochester. Four of these locations are in "definitely declining" and "hazardous" areas according to the redlining map from 1940. This shows that areas that black people could feel safe had the worst housing situations in the city. The "best" and "still desirable" areas only have one location where black people could go. This shows that segregation did happen, it was encouraged by redlining, and that African Americans were placed in undesirable locations.
The Present
Racial Composition
White, Black, and Asian Populations by census tracts and by percent; other races have populations below 2%
Looking at this, we can see that the largest concentration of minorities are in southeastern and northwestern Rochester.
Source: Bureau of the Census 2010
Renting vs Owning
In 2019, about 26% of households were rented and 74% were owned. A household is "cost-burdened" when more than 30% of household income goes towards housing costs. These families are more likely to not have enough money for other necessities like food and medicine. About 15.4% of homeowners are cost burdened while 43.8% of home renters are cost burdened. In addition, about 5% of homeowners are severely cost burdened compared to 21.5% of home renters which means they spend more than half of their income on housing. It is clear that more renters experience troubling housing costs and are on the lower end of property inequality.
Source: Minnesota Housing Partnership
Renting and Race
Renting in Olmsted
The darker portions of the map show census tracts that have a higher proportion of rented households. Looking at the racial make-up of the county, we know that the black population is larger in the same areas that have a high proportion of renting. In fact, 76% of black households rent. Households that rent are more likely to be "cost-burdened" and "severely cost-burdened", and white households do not rent as often. We can see that black people are more likely to be cost-burdened. These households must put their income towards rent instead of other necessities or savings. Expensive rents contribute to the continuation of racial inequality in housing.
Source: Bureau of the Census 2010
Homelessness
Every year, Three Rivers counts how many homeless people are in Olmsted on one night. In January 2019, they counted 452 people in and out of shelters. This is lower than previous years. Almost 90% of homeless people were found in shelters. In addition, 253 were white, 160 were black, 7 were American Indian, 3 were Asian, and 29 were multiple races. In the entire population, there are 14 times as many white people as black people, and we can see that this proportion is not the same in the homeless composition. Black people are over represented, and are more likely to be homeless. This is another example of racial inequality in housing.
Public Schools
The four school districts in Olmsted: Rochester, Dover-Eyota, Stewartville, and Byron.
Rochester School District's student population is 7% black, and the others's black population is 0%. Rochester School District has the lowest school attendance, test scores, and graduation rates. They have the highest proportion of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch and is at a "mid-low" level while the other three are at a "low" eligibility level.
Income, race, and education are correlated. Education is intended to give equal opportunity to every student, but it is clear location affects the quality of education.
Century High School, one of three in Rochester School District
Source: Census Data ACS 2017 5-year, Minnesota Department of Education
Conclusion
Olmsted was founded when white people took land from the Wahpeton tribe. In 1940, the federal government redlined Rochester based on racist ideology and created systemic change in neighborhoods. The segregation and devaluing of property caused inequalities we still see today. Renting, schooling, and homelessness disproportionately affected black communities and made it more difficult for them to accumulate wealth. We need to address these past injustices to create equality in housing today.
Citations
U.S. Census Bureau (2018). Quick Facts, Olmsted County, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/olmstedcountyminnesota
University of Richmond. Mapping Inequality in New Deal America. Retrieved from https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining/#loc=14/44.021/-92.477&city=rochester-mn&text=intro
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library. (1941). The Negro Motorist Green-Book: 1941 Retrieved from http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/cc8306a0-83c4-0132-cc93-58d385a7bbd0
Leonard, J. A. (1998). History of Olmsted County, Minnesota: together with sketches of many of its pioneers, citizens, families and institutions. Salem, MA: Higginson Book Co.
Native Land Digital. Native Land. Retrieved from native-land.ca.
Minnesota Housing Partnership (2019). Olmsted County. https://www.mhponline.org/images/stories/images/research/coprofs/2019/Olmsted.pdf
Three Rivers Cap (2019). Point-in-Time Count MN-502 Rochester/Southeast Minnesota CoC. Retrieved from https://threeriverscap.org/sites/default/files/2019_pit_hdx_summary_report.pdf
Minnesota Department of Education (2018). Minnesota Report Card. Retrieved from https://rc.education.state.mn.us/#mySchool/orgId--10535000000__groupType--district__p--3
