By Emily Rennie, Archivist for the Levittown History Collection
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| (1968). Mildred Cantor and a Library Cadet Looking at Material from the Levittown History Collection [Photograph]. Photograph Collection (LHC.PHO.1036, Book X, PHO.659). Levittown History Collection, Levittown Public Library, Levittown, N.Y. |
Documenting the history of Levittown has been an ongoing project by the Levittown Public Library since the library’s founding in 1951. Although Levittown had only been established in 1947, residents understood that they were a part of something important as the blueprint for the deluge of suburbs emerging in post-World War II America. By 1956, the public library in Levittown had accumulated a comprehensive assemblage of historical materials. Newsclippings were collected by librarians and indexed into a large cabinet, early 19th century atlases of the local area were purchased by the library, and yearbooks of the local schools were amassed¹. Also added were schools budget reports, a survey of the community by the Levittown Citizens committee, local voting results, and “complete scores and figures for all of Levittown High’s football and basketball games…for the sports-minded members of the community².”
In 1968, the library published a call for contributions to its Levittown History Collection in the Levittown Tribune, seeking material including “photographs of the area, information about early years of the community, brochures, advertisements, magazine and newspaper articles about Levittown³." Around the same time, the library initiated its Levittown Oral History Project, which recorded the first-hand accounts of residents who played prominent roles in shaping the community. The active participation of the community helped to establish a collection at the library reflective of the architectural and social development of Levittown from the perspective of those who lived there. |
| (1967). Judge Paul Widlitz Being Interviewed for the Levittown History Collection Oral History Project [Photograph]. Photograph Collection (LHC.PHO.1036, Book X, PHO.658). Levittown History Collection, Levittown Public Library, Levittown, N.Y. |
The Levittown Public Library officially declared its Levittown History Collection in 1972⁴, mandating the preservation of our community history and recognizing the preservation of local memory as tantamount to the other services the library provides. Today, our community collection is used for research and exhibitions across the globe. This blog intends to make our collection more accessible and strives to contextualize the heritage of our town, Levittown.
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Exhibition view of Suburbia: Building the American Dream at the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona. (2024). Barcelona, Spain. Photograph by Cris Palomar. |