A short history of Camden City can be found in this article. This article highlights some interesting facts about Camden City's past and present. The population of Camden City is made up of diverse and multicultural people. It was a thriving industrial city in the nineteenth century, and remained prosperous through the Great Depression and World War II. After the 1950s, however, Camden's economy began to suffer. The decline of manufacturing industries pushed the population of the city down. In addition, white flight and the growth of interstate highway systems pushed white residents out of the city. This forced the community to rebuild. As a result, crime and civil unrest became common. By 1971, this trend accelerated and the population of Camden began to decline.
The late twentieth century saw the continued outward migration of Camden residents. Hispanic families followed the pattern of earlier outmigration, increasing the minority population in the city. Hispanic families also began to fill the void left by the black population. As this trend continued, Camden's racial makeup shifted dramatically, and the city's schools were no longer served by white residents. However, local residents attempted to slow down the racial turnover and incorporate the newcomers. In the mid-1990s, the city formed the Stable Integration Review Board (SISB), which encouraged white residents to buy homes and gain black support for this move.
Camden City's waterfront neighborhoods are well known. South Waterfront and Central Waterfront are both located on the Delaware River. South Waterfront was first settled in 1851 and later served as a housing community for the New York Shipbuilding Company during World War II. These waterfront neighborhoods contain a large number of historic buildings and cultural landmarks. In fact, Camden is home to a state historic district and many cultural icons.