I’ve lived most of my life in Levittown Pennsylvania. There was a time that I thought I would move away, but these days (pre-retirement), I’m not really looking to leave. I’m a second generation L-town girl, after all. There’s a chance that the Northeast may not be affordable after retirement but we’ll see how that turns out. I am making plans that should make staying possible. I like it here and I have great neighbors.

My parents moved into the burbs from Trenton NJ. when some sections of Levittown were still unfinished. William Levitt built the first tract homes and where every third house or so was identical. It was a new philosophy in housing and families rushed to move in even before streets had blacktop. There were stories of men coming home from work who judged their turn by the bump in the road, pulled into the driveway and entered the wrong house at night. So what do you say to the guy who you think is in your house?

I was born out of the state but have been here since 1954 when we first moved into Magnolia Hill, a Bristol Township section of Levittown.  The Pennsylvania Levittown is not an incorporated town. We sit in four townships. Bristol, Falls, Middletown and Tullytown Townships. My family had a short stay in Michigan while my parents transitioned into another house, but that’s about it—I’ve been here almost from the beginning.

I’m a second generation Levittowner—not to be confused with the house’s name –The Levittowner. The Levittowner model is really a ranch style home because it’s a single floor house. The Rancher is really a Cape Cod style because it has two floors. There are other models/styles but it’s all very confusing to new people. Why do we name houses anyway?

When I was young I did not get the sense of the newness. Levittown was where I had grown up and I hadn’t seen the farms that had come before. When I graduated from high school, the community was well established and in my mind had always been there. It certainly felt that way when I started my first job at Lucas Lumber in 1966. At that time the 15-year warranted roof shingles were being replaced for the first time—contractors just shingled over the old first layer. The next replacement would require a tear-off in another fifteen or twenty years. My house has seen three replacements or maybe four (I’m not the first owner) and I’m sure it will need one more before I’m done being a home owner. The last installment was a 30-year roof which now has sixteen years on it. It all seems so impossible.

Over the years I’ve weathered the single car driveway, small bedrooms, an itty bitty kitchen, can’t turn around bathrooms, cold aluminum windows and a lack of closet space. Now that I’m old enough to start getting rid of stuff I’ve collected, I just might stay. Why do I want a bigger house now? I will purge instead. Besides, I’m too invested in roof shingles.

 Alice Deeny