Levittown

[BigMac]

New York Times
October 15, 2007

SLIDE SHOW

Levittown Through the Years

Sixty years ago the houses of Levittown, N.Y., were modest little boxes. Today, they have been renovated beyond recognition.

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A view of Levittown, N.Y., in 1948, shortly after the mass-produced suburb was completed on Long Island farmland.

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William J. Levitt in 1954. Mr. Levitt, who built Levittown, N.Y., is credited as the father of modern American suburbia.

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Sixty years ago this month, the first families moved into Levittown. The Cape Cod-style homes that first became available in 1947 — with four rooms and one bathroom — were offered for $6,990, and 800-square-foot ranch homes went for $7,990.

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These days, many of the original Levittown homes have been remodeled and enlarged beyond recognition. A decade ago, there were perhaps 200 unaltered Levitts left, but only a handful remain today. At left, Polly Dwyer, the president of the Levittown Historical Society, is standing in front of the last unchanged Levittown home, which is located on Flax Lane.

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This Levittown home has also retained its original humble proportions.

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Some of the many Levittown homes that have been remodeled and expanded beyond their original proportions.

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Maureen Hare standing in front of her home at 31 Constellation Road in Levittown. Ms. Hare and her husband transformed their Levitt ranch house into a modern Victorian almost twice as large as the original.

Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company

[MikeW]

I grew up in one of the Levitt developments. My mother bought her house in 1952, and is still in it. My father significantly expanded it, so it's barely recognizable as a Levitt.

However, my mother's next door neighbor has a completely untouched Levitt. I hate the thing. I'm dying to buy it, and take a backhoe to it.

[lofter1]

Hahahahahaha \/



Maureen Hare ... and her husband transformed their Levitt ranch house into a modern Victorian ...


The writer wrote that ^^^ with a seemingly straight face :confused: