Levittown
Levittown is the name of seven large suburban housing developments created in the United States of America by William Levitt and his company Levitt & Sons. Built after World War II for returning veterans and their new families—but Federal Housing Administration (FHA) lenders limited residents to "the Caucasian race", as stipulated in housing rent and sales agreements[1]—the communities offered attractive alternatives to cramped central city locations and apartments. The Veterans Administration and the FHA guaranteed builders that qualified veterans could buy housing for a fraction of rental costs. Production was modeled on assembly lines, which enabled quick and economical production of similar or identical homes with rapid recovery of costs. Standard Levittown houses included a white picket fence, green lawns, and modern appliances.
Sales in the original Levittown began in March 1947. 1,400 homes were purchased during the first three hours.
Places
- Levittown, New York - the first Levittown (1947–1951)
- Levittown, Pennsylvania - the second Levittown (1952–1958)
- Willingboro Township, New Jersey - originally and colloquially known as Levittown (started 1958)
- Levittown, Puerto Rico (1963)
- Bowie, Maryland (1964)
- Crofton, Maryland (1970)
- Largo, Maryland (1963)
References
- ^ Rothstein, Richard (May 2, 2017). The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America. Liveright. pp. 82–83. ISBN 978-1-63149-286-0.
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