Transcript Document 7335175

The
Sociological
Impact of the
Baby Boom
Suburbia
This is a picture of the potato fields in Long Island, NY that would
become the prototypical American subdivision called Levittown. This
was one of the first examples of suburban housing built as a result of
the Baby Boom in post-war America.
This is the ‘after’ view of Levittown after the
subdivision was completed.
In addition to houses, Levittown's master plan called for swimming
pools, baseball fields, churches, schools, and shopping centers. Levitt
believed new homeowners preferred a full-service community with
"built-in" features—just like its houses
.
Elementary schools were to be nestled inside each master block so
that, in Levitt's words, "no child will have to walk more than one half
mile to school or cross any major road."
The subdivision contained five separate public swimming pools and a
number of little league baseball diamonds. Perhaps most influential to the
social fabric of post-war America though was Levitt’s idea for a centralized
shopping centre inside the suburban boundary of the community. This
idea created the first model for what is now known as the ‘shopping mall’.
Ease of access to these shopping centres fuelled American consumerism.
But at the same time, the shopping mall led to the extinction of ‘downtown’.
An aerial view of Levitt’s shopping centre-the largest single
shopping centre East of the Mississippi in its time.
Some examples of the homes that were mass produced in Levittown
Interior view of the new suburban household.
The typical kitchen in a suburban home. Notice the electric appliances and who is
featured in the picture. Exploring a typical Levittown kitchen.
The backyard view emphasized outdoor living as well. Notice the covered porch and
patio furniture.
"We are not builders. We are manufacturers."
Bill Levitt
On the assembly line made famous by Henry Ford, products moved down a conveyor belt to
stationary workers. Levitt inverted Ford's system by having the workers move "down the line"
to a stationary product—the individual house site.
Work crews performed the same specialized task at each house site. Some laid slabs, some
framed. One man's job consisted of bolting washing machines into the floor.
Whatever its drawbacks, Levitt's system was enormously productive. His Levittowns were the
fastest built developments in the history of American residential construction.
Levittown Timeline:
July 1951 -- Land purchase completed
December 1951 -- Sample houses open for inspection
March 1952 -- Construction begins
June 1952 -- First residents take possession
December 1952 -- First section completed
December 1957 -- Slab laid for last Levittown house--#17,311
During the 1950s, Levittown
embodied the suburban lifestyle,
with its emphasis on youth,
leisure, consumer goods, and
"easy living."
"We busted at the seams with kids."
Levittown school official
"Levittown will have more recreation
areas per square inch than any other
community."
William J. Levitt
Backyard Life
With dozens of children on every block, friendships formed quickly. These photos were taken in
the Indian Creek and Crabtree Hollow sections in 1956 and 1957.
Early TV documentary on
Levittown, NY
Leave it to Beaver Video Clip
The 1950s Sock Hop. Student’s
would gather to dance to Rock n’ Roll
music usually in the school cafeteria.
Jerry Lee Lewis performs on
American Bandstand, 1957
Typical fashion
in the 1950s
1960s
Countercultural
Development
This movement was a reaction against the conservative social mores of the 1950s, the political conservativism
(and perceived social repression) of the Cold War period, and the US government's extensive military
intervention in Vietnam. Opposition to the war was exacerbated in the US by the compulsory military draft.
The 1960s youth rebellion largely originated on college campuses, emerging directly out of the American Civil
Rights Movement. As the sixties progressed, the Vietnam war became an increasingly high-profile object of
criticism, and the sense of the younger generation as a class who wished to create a different society gained
momentum.
As criticism of the established social order became more widespread among the newly emergent youth class,
new theories about culture and personal identity began to spread, and old, non-western ideas--particularly with
regard to religion, social organization and spirtual enlightenment--were also embraced.
New cultural forms that were perceived as opposed to the old emerged, including the pop music of the Beatles,
which rapidly evolved to shape and reflect the youth culture's emphasis on change and experimentation.
Underground newspapers sprang up in most cities and college towns, serving to define and communicate the
range of phenomena that defined the counterculture: radical political opposition to "the establishment,"
colorful experimental (and often explicity drug-influenced) approaches to art, music and cinema, and
uninhibited indulgence in sex and drugs as a symbol of freedom.
The most visible radical element of this counterculture were the hippies, some of whom formed communes to
live as far outside of the established system as possible. This aspect of the movement rejected active political
engagement with the mainstream and, following the dictate of Timothy Leary to "tune in, turn on and drop
out", attempted to change society by dropping out of it.
Hippies
The Civil Rights Movement
The Vietnam War
Kent State Massacre
Neil Young: Ohio
Kent State Shooting
Women’s Rights Movement
JFK’s Assassination
Woodstock, 1969
Country Joe:
Vietnam Song