Robert Fishman's Suburbanization: USA

“The suburban subdivision was unquestionable a successful product. For many, it was a vast improvement over what they were used to. The houses were specious compared to city dwellings, and they contained modern conveniences. Air, light, and a modicum of greenery came with the package” (Kunstler, 105). Once again, living in Levittown was more logical than living anywhere else.

Interestingly enough, the decline of a major American suburban area went unnoticed for several years. Several economists realized that the failure could’ve been caused by the lack of actual “metropolitan-ness” in the area, meaning that the city wasn’t economically associated with the suburban towns that surround them.

Crabgrass Frontier: The Suburbanization of the United States is a book by Kenneth T. Jackson on the migration of many, primarily white, Americans to the suburbs during the mid-twentieth century and how many blacks were robbed of the opportunity to move elsewhere as well. From the chapter we read, we learn about the ways blacks were suppressed to worse parts of cities and how corporations and our government kept blacks from moving into different or better neighborhoods. The author argues that the lasting effects of the government have put a seal of approval on the racial discrimination in the housing market and these actions were picked up by private interests to deny mortgages to people, as they would say, based on geographical location of the property. Over the course of the book, Jackson gives evidence to how federal housing policies affected where Americans lived and how our government used it 's power to socially control racial minorities.

The drive for suburbanization reached its acme in England in the inter-war period. Whereas in the nineteenth century it had remained essentially a middle-class phenomenon, after the First World War, fuelled by a major government housing drive and a powerful reaction against high-density inner-city living, it also became the model for British working-class housing. The pace at which rural land was transformed into suburbia during 20 or so years between the two worlds were far outstripped that of any previous period. Outside the English speaking world, although the tradition of living in tenements continued, suburbanization quickened but was still slow compared with that in England and was to remain

Another monumental change in American domestic life in the 1950s and 1960s was the flock to suburbia. Document 4 describes the new housing boom that took place in America in the years after the war. The purpose of this document was to highlight the changes in American society by citing data that illustrates the majority move to suburbs over cities. The document also notes how city conditions and technological innovations have spearheaded this

During the 1960’s, the growth of Suburbia increased and helped many Americans. The growing of Suburbia was mainly towards poor non-wealthy people who were struggling to find homes. However, the growth of Suburbia led to Consumers Credit/ Debt, Women living a scheduled life, African Americans not getting a fair share and being segregated, and as well as the GI Bill. Therefore the growth of Suburbia had a negative impact socially on the U.S The increase in the economic growth is a big cause of why Suburbia was created.

The concept of suburbia quickly morphed into something far different from country living. Over the years, urban sprawl has created vast suburbs. Instead of local shops, the suburbs we know today have large malls full of box stores. Highways connect our suburbs to the city center instead of railways and the modern suburb doesn 't have the same sense of community that the original suburbs had. According to the documentary, "suburban life" and everything that comes with it has been packaged and sold in bulk to many Americans and Canadians. And this package we call "The American Dream", which is simply of a mockery or a satire of what the original suburbs used to be like, is

Before diving into the relevant action steps, it is important to understand the history that led to this crisis. Thompson (2010), states that after World War II, cities were highly valued and popular until conflict, poverty, and distress led to the demise of these cities; thus increasing the value of suburban

In the communities I grew up in, there were frequent changing circumstances that actually left my family not really as part of the community. From dingy, cheap and tiny places for rent, there has been significant points brought to the attention of the reader in this book that could attribute to the failure and success of neighborhoods. In Suburban Nation, the opening pages give a lot of insight on the issues that can come from these big and fancy, new housing developments.

After World War II, the United States of America became a much wealthier nation. As America gained wealth and the populations in urban cities and transportation technology increased, many Americans spread out, away from the urban cities, to fulfill the common dream of having a piece of land to call their own. The landscape constructed became known as the suburbs, exclusive residential areas within commuting distance of a city. The popularity and success of the suburban landscape caused suburbs to sprawl across the United States, from the east coast to the west coast and along the borders between Canada and Mexico. By the 1990s, many suburbs surrounding major urban cities developed into being more than merely exclusive residential areas.

Through a multitude of significant changes physically, conceptually, economically, and more, the societal reformation of cities in the Progressive Era had set themselves as the foundations of American civilization. The juxtaposition between the rich and poor statuses in these urban areas show the drastic separation within developing cities. Through this division caused a wide variety of living conditions, the majority of which held the overcrowded sections of cities where the population mostly stayed while the higher end communities had more luxurious lives. Through this success of entrepreneurship and economic growth from all aspects in cities, the entire landscape, both physically through innovative architecture and the perspectives outside rural and suburban areas had on them, had transformed for the better in these areas.

California is a state with a lifestyle and identity all its own. One factor contributing to California’s unique singularity is the lay out of its cities and suburban areas. Unlike many metropolitan areas, which built up, California spread out, creating a commuter culture of loosely connected communities surrounding larger cities and urban areas. The popularization of suburban neighborhoods gained prominence and momentum in the 1950s, following World War II,and the influx of veterans returning home and starting families. That decade’s economic growth, attributed to government spending on the construction of interstate highways and schools, the distribution of veterans’ benefits and the increase in military spending, left Californians with high wages and low unemployment and inflation (The 1950s). These circumstances, combined with the ingenuity of new developers regarding the layout, construction and affordability of economically built homes, spear headed the creation of suburban communities in California. With thousands of new homes being built and purchased and hundreds of people

The suburbs were attractive for many reasons: They were cleaner, newer, and had better-funded schools. They also provided a sense of security which city dwellers had long been seeking. The perceived problems of the city—crowding, crime, and poverty—could be left behind. And because the suburbs were politically independent of the core city, the layers of bureaucracy and corruption could be replaced by smaller, friendlier, and presumably more honest

Joshua Ruff in “For Sale — The America Dream,” analyzes the growth of suburban living in the United States. This article focuses mainly on the first suburban community that was developed in Levittown, New York in the early 1950s.

Among the American population, there was a desire for individual freedom following World War II. One being able to provide a large living space and accumulate material wealth became engrained in the American Dream. Many realized that the suburbs and living in planned sub divisions of land was an affordable option led to the growth of suburbia throughout the late 20th century.