The community is named for former President Theodore Roosevelt, but was also known as Greenwich and Rum Point for a time before that. Roosevelt has a long history of integration, having accepted black residents following the area's housing boom after World War II. Notable residents of the community have included both Flava Flav and Chuck D. of Public Enemy, actors Eddie and Charlie Murphy, basketball player Dr. J, singers Aaron and Damian Hall and radio host Howard Stern. In addition, Melvyn M. Sobel, James V. Petrungaro and David D. Weinberg, the original three members of The Ravens, a rock group well known on Long Island, performed from 1965–1969. According to the 2010 census, the population of Roosevelt is 16,272. The median household income is listed as $68,625.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of. of it is land and 0.56% is water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 15,854 people, 4,061 households, and 3,362 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 3,438.9/km2. There were 4,234 housing units at an average density of 918.4/km2. The racial makeup of the CDP was 3.97% White, 79.02% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 8.33% from other races, and 3.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 16.22% of the population. There were 4,061 households out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% were married couplesliving together, 30.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.2% were non-families. 12.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.88 and the average family size was 3.98. In the CDP, the population was spread out with 30.5% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 8.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $56,715, and the median income for a family was $56,380. Males had a median income of $30,694 versus $29,566 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $16,950. About 10.8% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.1% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.
