Restrictive covenants were one of the reasons that across many generations people of color found it difficult to live in Pierce County except at Fort Lewis. In 1970, nearly one-third of the county's Black population were attached to the military. Most of the rest lived in Hilltop neighborhood near the bend in the I-5 freeway. Asian and Latino people numbered only 5,373, a quarter of them stationed at the military base. The census counted 3,343 Puyallup people and other Indigenous Americans in 1970 but the tribe had lost control of reservation lands. Overall, the county population was 93% white. These numbers reflect patterns of both segregation and exclusion. And that history plays out today in homeownership rates, family wealth, and other effects of exclusion and inequality.
The links below lead to five pages featuring different kinds of maps, lists, and information. (1) map showing the locations of restrictive covenants; (2) map showing distributions of African Americans, Asian Americans, Indigenous Americans, Latinos, and Whites across six decades; (3) charts demonstrate the lingering effects of differential access to homeownership. (4) essay narrating the history of racial exclusion. (5) documents and data.
