Entrepreneurial vernacular: Developers' subdivisions in the 1920s.
Item
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Title
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Entrepreneurial vernacular: Developers' subdivisions in the 1920s.
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Identifier
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AAI9020778
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identifier
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9020778
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Creator
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Loeb, Carolyn Susan.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Eugene Santomasso
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Date
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1990
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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American Studies | Architecture | Urban and Regional Planning
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Abstract
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This study is concerned with the planning and design of speculative residential subdivisions built by real estate developers in the United States in the 1920s. It addresses the question of how a pattern of suburban housing was formulated and disseminated in the apparent absence of formal, centralized planning mechanisms.;The first focus of the study is the analysis of three representative subdivisions established in the twenties: the Ford Homes in Dearborn, Michigan; Brightmoor, Detroit, Michigan; and Westwood Highlands, San Francisco, California. I reconstruct the histories of these tracts, discussing the developers, builders, and architects involved in their creation, their siting and house design, and the niche each occupies within the history of development in its area. From these narratives and analyses, it is possible to locate recurring elements that constitute a pattern shaping such developments. These include the central role of developers in organizing and determining the design of these schemes, and the use of street plans, landscaping, schools and other facilities, and house design to create a clear neighborhood identity.;The second part of the study examines broader historical trends that enabled such a pattern to emerge. First, the rise of realtors as professionals and "community builders" is discussed in relation to the detachment of the architectural profession from concerns about small-scale housing, and in relation to the decreased design role that building craftsmen played as their work became routinized, mechanized and specialized. As a result of the trends affecting these three groups, realtors became the patrons of builders and architects, and their entrepreneurial expertise included the ability to organize the building and design processes needed for subdivision development.;Then I look at the network of professionals who were concerned with housing and homeownership issues in the twenties. Realtors along with engineers, planners, social reformers, and others, shared information and ideas in a number of ways, many of them under the auspices of the federal government. Through this associational network, the ideas that shaped subdivision development-including standardization and notions related to Clarence A. Perry's scheme for neighborhood unit planning--were disseminated.;Finally, I examine the design of subdivision housing and argue that it reinforced the emphasis on neighborhood identity and continuity that was necessary for successful subdivision development.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
