US Edition
Published • loading... • Updated
In post-WWII America, the Levittown house was a house for all — as long as you weren't Black
The development added more than 17,000 homes and used federal mortgage guarantees while barring Black families from buying.
- On August 19, 1957, William Myers and his wife, Daisy, became the first Black family to move into the 15,000-home Levittown, Penn. community, prompting state police deployment by the next day to manage protesting residents.
- Developer William Levitt refused to sell to Black families and included restrictive covenants barring resales to them; The Federal Housing Authority guaranteed mortgages primarily for white buyers in white communities.
- Levitt initially built 2,000 homes, but demand from returning WWII veterans resulted in about three times that many sign-ups; the project eventually grew to more than 17,000 houses about 40 miles outside New York City.
- Ed Berenson, a professor of history at New York University, says Levitt "set up a structure that still exists today, and it's a structure that has really maintained racial inequality."
- This history is part of "American Objects," a recurring series marking the 250 anniversary of the United States, illustrating how homes—the largest financial asset for many Americans—became a tool of systemic segregation.
Insights by Ground AI
18 Articles
18 Articles
The Morning CallReposted by 
Washington Times
Washington TimesIn post-WWII America, the Levittown house was a house for all — as long as you weren’t Black
Levittown, about 40 miles outside of New York City on Long Island, grew to more than 17,000 houses, the first wholly planned American suburb. But the first Levittown and others that developer William Levitt built, and suburbs developed by others, weren’t open to all.
·Allentown, United States
Read Full Article
The Toronto StarReposted by 
St Catharines Standard
St Catharines StandardIn post-WWII America, the Levittown house was a house for all - as long as you weren’t Black
They weren't the most impressive-looking houses: boxy and small, two bedrooms with a living room and kitchen, no basement, tossed up one after another in assembly-line fashion.
·Toronto, Canada
Read Full Article
Associated Press News+12 Reposted by 12 other sources
In post-WWII America, the Levittown house was a house for all — as long as you weren't Black
They weren’t the most impressive-looking houses: boxy and small, two bedrooms with a living room and kitchen, no basement, tossed up one after another in assembly-line fashion.
·United States
Read Full Article
Coverage Details
Total News Sources18
Leaning Left9Leaning Right2Center6Last UpdatedBias Distribution53% Left
Bias Distribution
- 53% of the sources lean Left
53% Left
L 53%
C 35%
12%
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
