Central Ohio is facing a housing crisis, but it’s not the first time.
The area, along with most of the rest of the country, experienced a housing crisis and subsequent boom following the end of World War II. Young American GIs flooded back home, eager to start families.
“And for families, they need houses,” said Cameron Wood, Oral History Coordinator at Ohio History Connection.
In a previous position, Wood helped acquire and build the Ohio History Center’s metal Lustron home for its 1950s: Building the American Dream exhibit.
Ohio History Center’s Lustron came from Virginia by way of the New York City Metropolitan Museum of Art, but like all Lustrons, it was built just outside Columbus near the airport. Just under 2,500 of the prefabricated homes were built between 1947 and 1950 and shipped across the U.S. and even to South America, Wood said.
The Lustron at Ohio History Center has no roof, but it is otherwise complete with almost entirely original parts. Furnished with authentic 1950s décor, it serves as an interactive exhibit to show what life was like in the decade.
It took Wood and a team of volunteers about a year to build a foundation and get the pieces of the house back in prime condition and assembled. In Lustron’s brief heyday, though, the house would have gone up much quicker.
“They would put them up in a couple of days. It really depended on the builder. If you had a good builder, probably two days, maybe a week, probably to put everything together,” Wood said.
The Lustrons were one of a number of creative solutions attempting to solve a nationwide housing problem at the time. The compact, “modern” Lustrons ultimately didn’t catch on and the company fizzled after just three years, but plenty of the houses remain standing, including a few in the Clintonville area, Wood said.
Housing crisis
Following the end of World War II, soldiers returned home in droves.
Residential construction had been limited during the Great Depression. When the U.S. got involved in the war, most building efforts were focused on military defense, resulting in a scarcity of construction materials.
In some parts of Ohio, a housing crisis had begun even before that as industrial production ramped up, bringing more workers and their families.
The result was that a newly prosperous post-war America was without needed housing stock. Families doubled up and some veterans found themselves living in garages, barns or trailers.
Sound familiar?
Erin Prosser, Assistant Director of Housing Strategies for the City of Columbus, noted that Columbus had historically been an affordable place for housing, until a renewed focus on job creation led to quick population growth between 2010 and 2020. That followed on the heels of the 2008 recession, when little construction had taken place, which lead to the current situation in central Ohio.
“And what you see is just an under building of the last decade in all price points across all types of housing,” Prosser said.
Historic growth
In post-war America, the federal government stepped in: The GI bill, among other things, allowed veterans to get government-backed home loans.
Wood said to accommodate the need, a construction boom saw houses built in “an assembly-like fashion, which really hadn't been done up to that point.”
And, of course, “pre-packed homes” like Columbus’ Lustrons were introduced. They weren’t a new idea, Wood said, but they were given a jumpstart and modernized.
In Whitehall, the first “modern-day cookie-cutter subdivision” was built in 1945, said Steve McLoughlin, past president of the Whitehall Historical Society.
The historical society happens to be in a relocated Lustron house in Whitehall Community Park. McLoughlin said when the historical society moved it there, it became the only Lustron house ever built in Whitehall.
“But then there were so many other choices in the area at the time that this may not have been the right choice for new homebuyers,” McLoughlin said.
"I think the government assistance is probably what spawned much, if not most of the development here."Steve McLaughlin, past president of Whitehall Historical Society
Whitehall, named for a farm and inn of that name, was incorporated as a village in 1947, and became a city less than a decade later, thanks to sudden post-war growth in the area.
Before World War II, there was no Whitehall, McLoughlin said. “It was just open area, kind of a pass through to get to some of the other communities in central Ohio."
In 1949, the Town and Country Shopping Center was built. At the same time, people were able to buy cars again, since the materials needed to build them were no longer allocated to the war effort. Both factors contributed to Whitehall’s increased popularity, McLaughlin said.
“And it kind of spawned the beginning of a building boom in Whitehall. Three apartment complexes were built that were all of the same design. That was Woodcliff and English Village and Parklawn," he said.
More development followed. Whitehall quickly became a community of small, entry-level homes. It remains that way today, McLaughlin said.
Whitehall’s many 1940s and 1950s developments were marketed to veterans, who could often buy with zero down and low-monthly payments, he said.
"I think the government assistance is probably what spawned much, if not most of the development here,” McLaughlin said.
In the decade from 1950 to 1960, Whitehall’s population quintupled from around 4,000 to more than 20,000.
Equity and accessibility
Across the county, government support and quick construction gave birth to the modern American suburbs, which built up America's middle class. But the suburbs weren't open to everyone.
Ohio History Connection’s Wood noted that many suburban homes came with restrictive deeds and covenants dictating who could live there. Oftentimes, Black and other minority families were excluded.
“So, no, they were not necessarily all inclusive to all peoples,” he said.
That lead to an imbalance in wealth building that can still be seen today, Prosser said.
“While there was a concerted effort and a really strong set of policies and funding that really accelerated that housing construction, as we know, the outcomes were quite inequitable,” she said.
She said new efforts to build, preserve, and invest in housing in the region are being done with the intent of being inclusive to all families.
Columbus is also updating its zoning code for the first time in 70 years, allowing it to reconsider the lingering 1950s priorities that are still codified. Now, the city can shift its focus to equity and diversifying housing stock.
In the post-war boom, the focus of building was mainly on single-family homes.
“We really limited our ability to build in that density of housing and those opportunities, when we when we focused heavily on that single family product,” Prosser said.
Different types of housing allow people at different income levels and stages of their life to find what they want and can afford, and that keeps costs down for everyone, Prosser explained.
“While there was a concerted effort and a really strong set of policies and funding that really accelerated that housing construction, as we know, the outcomes were quite inequitable."Erin Prosser, assistant director of housing strategies for the city of Columbus
Affordability
Government funding remains a component of keeping housing affordable.
Today’s affordable housing is built no differently than a market rate home, but is supported with government dollars, Prosser said.
“I think in a lot of communities, you would be hard pressed to drive around and identify specifically what is affordable housing that is income restricted and protected,” Prosser said.
In Columbus, voters in November approved $200 million in affordable housing bond dollars. Mayor Andrew Ginther just earmarked the first $50 million in his proposed 2023 capital budget, Prosser said.
The city will use that to continue to work on its four housing priorities: build, invest thoughtfully, protect current homeowners and renters and include everyone.
Takeaways
So, the big question is can central Ohio learn from the great housing boom of the past?
Wood, looking at the museum’s Lustron, said that those working to solve today’s housing crisis should avoid over-committing to a short-term solution. After all, families grow out of small, starter homes.
“So, kind of don't overinvest in a solution for the problem right now, without looking to where people are going to go in the future," he said.
McLaughlin, speaking about the Whitehall Historical Society and the importance of history, said, “I think it's important for any community to be able to, you know, look at its roots and know the story behind it and just sort of kind of say, well, where did we come from? And find answers to that.”
Prosser noted that as central Ohio continues to grow, the region has the opportunity to do housing right.
“I think we have the ability to learn from the outcomes that we saw out of the 1950s housing boom and build the housing we need, but do it in a way that's equitable, and making sure that our policies and our practices and where we're investing our dollars is to support that economic opportunity for all our families,” she said.
