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Renting an Apartment in Levittown
Levittown, Pennsylvania is a census-designated place (CDP) and suburban
community located in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, within the Philadelphia
metropolitan area. As of the 2000 census, the Levittown CDP had a total
population of 53,966. It is 40 feet (12 meters) above sea level. Though not a
municipality, it is commonly reckoned as the largest suburb of Philadelphia in
Pennsylvania. Upper Darby Township, Philadelphia's largest suburban township in
Pennsylvania, and other suburban townships boast larger populations, yet these
municipalities consist of more than one locality; 2 3 In New Jersey, both Camden
(though wholly urban in character) and Cherry Hill have more inhabitants than
Levittown.
History
Levittown, Pennsylvania, is a suburban community, planned and built by Levitt &
Sons. The majority of the land on which it is built was purchased in 1951.
Houses built in Levittown consisted of just six models, including the
Levittowner, the Rancher, the Jubilee, the Pennsylvanian, the Colonial and the
Country Clubber. Levitt & Sons constructed only single-family dwellings in the
community, each surrounded by a lawn, with only modest exterior variations,
modern in style, with built-in appliances and landscaping. The homes were
moderately priced and required only a low down payment. Construction of
Levittown began in February 1952, soon after completion of Levittown, New York,
located on Long Island. Levittown, Pennsylvania, was the second "Levittown"
built by William J. Levitt, who is often credited as the creator of the modern
American suburb.
What set Levittown apart from other developments at the time was that it was
built as a complete community. Levitt & Sons designed neighborhoods with
traffic-calming curvilinear roads, in which there were no four-way
intersections. Each neighborhood had within its boundaries a site donated by
Levitt & Sons for a public elementary school. Locations for churches and other
public facilities were set aside on main thoroughfares such as the Levittown
Parkway, likewise donated by the builder to religious groups and other
organizations. Other amenities included pools, parks, "greenbelts," baseball
fields and playgrounds, and a shopping center located in Tullytown Borough that
was considered large and modern at the time of its construction (and in fact was
the largest east of the Mississippi). Residents (who are sometimes called
Levittowners) were first expected to comply with a lengthy list of rules and
regulations regarding the upkeep of their homes and use of their property; these
proved unenforceable over time. In the years since Levitt & Sons ended
construction, three- and four-story "garden apartments" and a number of
non-Levitt owner-occupied houses have been built in Levittown.
Initially Levitt & Sons would not sell homes to African Americans. However,
pressure on Levitt led to a change in the company's policy. Levittown's first
black couple, Bill and Daisy Myers, bought a home in the Dogwood Hollow section
in 1957. Their move to Levittown was not entirely peaceful, and required
intervention by state authorities. The community's otherwise placid exterior was
again disturbed during days of so-called "middle-class" gas riots in 1979 in the
wake of the Camp David Peace Accords that resulted in a second embargo by Arab
oil-producing nations. The unrest occurred as lines swelled and tempers flared
in the heart of Levittown at an intersection known as Five Points, a location
surrounded by six service stations.
A baseball team from Levittown, Pennsylvania, won the Little League World Series
in 1960. Levittown American beat an opponent from Fort Worth, Texas to win the
honor.
The Levittown Shopping Center (known officially as but rarely called the
"Levittown Shop-a-Rama"), located in Tullytown Borough, began a slow decline in
the mid-1970s from which it never recovered with the building of the Oxford
Valley Mall. The mall, located just north of Levittown, in Langhorne,
Pennsylvania, in Middletown Township, drew shoppers away from the older
Levittown facility, given Oxford Valley's much larger size, and enclosed
shopping environment. In 2002, the redeveloped site of the Shop-a-rama was
reopened as the Levittown Town Center. The completed facility will contain
468,675 square feet (43,541 square meters) of retail space.
Public pools, built by Levitt & Sons and operated by the Levittown Public
Recreation Association (LPRA), were closed in 2002 with the exception of one
located in the Pinewood section. LPRA Headquarters (and other landmarks) of this
prototypical post-war suburb of sometimes mythic importance have been the focus
of historic preservation efforts. Since 2002, studies have been underway to
establish the Levittown Historic District.
In 2003, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia dismissed an assistant
pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Roman Catholic Church, a large church
prominently located on Levittown Parkway, on allegations of sexual abuse with
minors. The assistant pastor was commonly known as Father Frank. An ongoing
investigation by District Attorney of Philadelphia Lynne Abraham had previously
uncovered 169 priests since 1967 who had been reassigned or otherwise shielded
by the Archdiocese when reports of sexual misconduct with minors surfaced; Two
of these had spent time in parish ministry at other Catholic churches located in
Levittown.
First Baby Born in Levittown
The First baby born in Levittown was a baby girl born to Joseph and Theresa
Dunn. The family lived in a section of Levittown called Stony Brook. The baby
girl was named Theresa after her mother. Terry was born on July 10, 1952. She
was the third child of eight born to Joseph and Theresa Dunn. The family
ancestry was Irish Catholic. Joseph was a WWII veteran born and raised in
Bristol, PA. Theresa was born and raised in Penndel, PA. Levittown afforded many
veterans an opportunity to own a home in the post war era. The Dunn family was a
typical baby boomer family raised in the neighborhoods of Levittown.
Municipalities and Sections
Levittown, Pennsylvania, is not an incorporated place, though efforts in the
early 1950s were made to incorporate. Some Levittown residents feared that
incorporation would lead to higher taxes, by robbing the prospective
municipality of a commercial tax base.
Levittown's 41 neighborhoods (locally called "sections") are found in parts of
four separate municipalities: Bristol Township, Pennsylvania (including the
sections of Plumbridge, Mill Creek, Indian Creek, Goldenridge, Blue Ridge,
Whitewood, Orangewood, Yellowood, Violetwood, Red Cedar Hill, Apple Tree Hollow,
Holly Hill, Crabtree Hollow, Oaktree Hollow, Greenbrook, Farmbrook, Dogwood
Hollow, Junewood, Magnolia Hill, and most of Kenwood and Stonybrook, and a small
part of Birch Valley), Falls Township, Pennsylvania (including the sections of
Vermilion Hills, Thornridge, Elderberry Pond, North Park, Willow Wood, and
portions of Pinewood, Lakeside and most of Birch Valley), Middletown Township,
Pennsylvania (including the sections of Deep Dale East, Deep Dale West, Highland
Park, Twin Oaks, Forsythia Gate, Snowball Gate, Red Rose Gate, Upper Orchard,
Lower Orchard, Juniper Hill, Cobalt Ridge and Quincy Hollow), and the Borough of
Tullytown, Pennsylvania (including portions of Stonybrook, Kenwood, Pinewood and
Lakeside).
The names of the streets within each section uniformly begin with the same
letter that begins the name of the section in question, a plan that offers a
good clue as to where any particular street might be located. "X" and "Z" are
not used for section or street names. As there are more than 24 section names,
"road" is used for street names in sections to the west of Edgely Road, "lanes"
are found in those section to the east. Red Rose Gate, Forsythia Gate, and
Snowball Gate are collectively known as "The Gates." (These were the only
sections without sidewalks so as to lend a more "executive" appearance to the
neighborhoods.) Lakeside sits next to Lake Levittown. Magnolia Hill is on a
prominent hill. Mill Creek is found next to a creek by the same name.
Middletown residents are served by public schools run by the Neshaminy School
District. Bristol Township public schools are managed by the Bristol Township
School District, while residents of Falls Township and Tullytown Borough are
served by the Pennsbury School District. Some students attend schools run by
Roman Catholic, Lutheran, evangelical Protestant and Quaker organizations, in
and around Levittown.
Geography
Levittown is located at [show location on an interactive map] 40°9′15″N,
74°50′59″city (40.154109, -74.849756)GR1. Levittown lies in the southern end of
Bucks County ("Lower Bucks"), between Philadelphia and Trenton, New Jersey;
Downtown Philadelphia ("Center City") is approximately 22 miles (35 kilometers)
away. It is part of the Philadelphia metropolitan area (an area also known
generally as the Delaware Valley). It is adjacent to and nearly surrounds
Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, a suburban community more modest in scale, but
that shares many of Levittown's characteristics.
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) regional rail serves
Levittown to the south at its Levittown-Tullytown station, and to the north at
its Langhorne and Woodbourne stations. Interstate 95 runs to the north and west
of Levittown (connecting it with Philadelphia and the suburbs north of Trenton);
The Pennsylvania Turnpike runs southwest of Levittown (connecting it with the
western suburbs and the New Jersey Turnpike), and U.S. Route 1 runs to the
north, carrying traffic directly into downtown Trenton. The nearest
international airport is Philadelphia International Airport (Airport Code PHL),
approximately 34 miles (55 kilometers) southwest of Levittown; The nearest
Amtrak station is just across the Delaware River in Trenton, just over nine
miles (14 kilometers) to the east.
Though a steel mill once operated by United States Steel Corporation provided
employment in nearby Fairless Hills, many Levittowners have historically
commuted by automobile or train to Philadelphia, some to Trenton, still others
to more distant locales in as many as four states. Just over ten percent of
employed Levittowners both live and work in the community.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 10.2
square miles (26.5 kmē), of which 0.5 kmē (0.59%) is water.
Demographics
Though the population reached a high of more than 75,000, according to the
censusGR2 of 2000, there were 53,966 people in Levittown. There were 18,603
households, and 14,510 families in the CPD. The 2000 population density measured
5,309.5 per square mile (2,050.8 per square kilometer). In Levittown, there are
a total of 19,044 housing units at an average density of 1,873.7 per square mile
(723.7 per square kilometer). Median rent in Levittown at the time of the 2000
Census was $657. Monthly homeowner costs, for people with mortgages, totalled
$1,227 on average. The community's racial makeup is 94.36% White, 2.45% African
American, 0.16% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander; 0.86% are
other races, and 1.17% are two or more races. 2.22% of the population is
Hispanic or Latino, who can be of any race.
Of Levittown's 18,603 households, 35.8% have children under the age of 18 living
with them, 60.7% are married couples living together, 12.3% are headed by a
woman, and 22.0% are so-called "non-family" households. 17.8% of all households
in Levittown are made up of individuals living alone, and 8.5% consist of
someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average "household"
size is 2.89 and the average "family" size is 3.28.
In the Levittown CDP, 26.4% of the population is under the age of 18, 7.8% from
18 to 24 years of age, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% 65
years of age or older. The median age is 37. For every 100 females, there are
96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 92.6 males. The
median income for a household in the Levittown CDP is $52,514, and the median
income for a family is $57,220. Men have a median income of $40,411, while women
in Levittown have a median income of $29,685. The per capita income is $20,047.
4.6% of the population and 3.1% of Levittown families live below the official
poverty line. 5.6% of those under the age of 18 and 3.5% of those 65 and older
live below the poverty line. For people 25 years and over in Levittown, 85% have
at least a high school degree, 14% have at least a Bachelor's degree. The mean
travel time to work is nearly 25 minutes.
By national origin, Levittowners are Irish (31.7%), German (28.4%), Italian
(16.1%), English (10.9%) and Polish (9.5%); 3.8% are foreign born. Although
accurate current statistics by religious affiliation are lacking, Roman
Catholics and Jews are thought to have been somewhat overrepresented among
Levittown's original inhabitants, while Protestants are thought to have been
underrepresented. Levittown, in addition to nearly three-dozen Protestant
(including two Episcopal), three Roman Catholic and two Orthodox churches, and
both a Reform Jewish congregation and a nearby Conservative Jewish synagogue,
now boasts a Turkish Islamic mosque, a Hindu house of worship, the BAPS Shri
Swaminarayan Mandir, and a Korean-language Presbyterian church. Levittown's
largest church is likely St. Michael the Archangel Roman Catholic Church,
located on the Levittown Parkway in Tullytown Borough, with more than 11,000
Catholics nominally within its parish boundaries. As befits the Quaker State,
the nearby Middletown, Fallsington and Bristol Friends Meeting Houses serve
Levittown. In the Levittown CDP, 25% of the adult population has never been
married, 8% of adults divorced, 8% widowed and 2% separated.
Approximately 2% of Levittowners live as same-sex "unmarried partners," with
slightly more coupled lesbians residing in Levittown than coupled gay men than
would statistically be expected by mere chance alone. United Christian Church, a
United Church of Christ (UCC) congregation (also affiliated with the Disciples
of Christ), a Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregation, and St. Paul's Episcopal
Church serve Levittown with "welcoming" ministries. The Bucks County Courier
Times, a daily newspaper, is published in Levittown; It was once called the
Levittown Times. Its policy is to publish annoucements of same-sex unions.