New-York tribune., 1918-08-18
''Take a Roorner"
Campaign in Some
Districts Cause.
New Family Prob.
lens Where Ex.
cessive Crowdine
Raises the Death
Rate

serious nature and raised the deaA
rate.
When one roomer has been tslo,
in there is nothing to prevent an
ottel and another being added n
the family group. Bridgeport was
one of the first cities to suffer from
the roomer evil. When the rand
industrial expansion produced an IN
crease in population of about 70 uer
cent in two years, homes that had
never before been open to strangers
responded to patriotic appeal and
threw open their doors. For time
six and seven people slept in One
room.
Besides increasing the death rate
overcrowding, bad ventilation AND
defective sewerage produce con.
slant sickness. Workers are co,-
stantly attacked by rheumatism
colds, typhoid and tuberculosis.
Meanwhile, architects have been
busy drawing plans for working.
mems dwellings, and now as never
before both looks and comfort have
been seriously taken into considera.
ton, while the lessons learned from
past experiences are being used in
bettering modern construction.
One of the largest and most st.
tractive settlements now under con.
struction for the housing of war
workers is at Yorkship Village near
Camden, N. j., where the United
States will soon house thousands Of
shipworkers, employed by the New
York Shipbuilding Corporation, man.
ufacturing ships for Uncle Sam.
The first thousand of these houses
are to be ready for occupancy in o.
tober, and another thousand is lust
being put under construction. When
completed the village will house
close to ten thousand people.
The Emergency Fleet Corporation,
some months ago, organized a de-
partment of housing and transpcr.
tation, with Merritt Taylor, the
we'll known transportation expert, as
director, with J. Willison Smith.
of the Land Title Company, of Phil
adelphia, as assistant director. Mr..
kohn, the we'll known New York
architect, was made director of
production, and he has organized an
efficient staff which includes town
planners and landscape architects
from this locality. Under the diec.
ton Of the government, the New
York Shipbuilding Corporation o.
ganlzed a subsidiary company,
known as the Fairview Realty Com
pany, to have special charge of the
development, and appointed Wal
lace Benedict general manager.
Lockwood-G Greene & Co., of Boston,
did the engineering work on the
project, and are now in charge Of
the construction as "engineer-mana.
gers"
Electus D. Litchfeld, of New
York, was selected as the architec.
of the village early in February;
since which time Mr., Litchfeld, with
his associate, Pliny Rogers. and an
office full Of craftsmen have been
working night and day producing
plans for Transforming a suburban
farm on the outskirts of Camden
and short walk from the shipyards
into a veritable Colonial town. Mr.
Litchfield's plan provides for road
way from the shipyard, which ter
inmates in town square and COM
mercial centre in the heart Of the
tract, while on the streets radiating
from the latter are groups of brick
houses in architecture appropriate
to the vicinity of Philadelphia and
the Delaware River. Of the first
1000 houses under construction,
there are about $50 groups Of
twenty-seven different types in sew
enty combinations. Every house IS
complete with hot and cold water
systems, modern plumbing, up-to'
date toilet fixtures, electric light,
cellar furnace, hot water and gas
range.
Most of the houses are Of brick,s
few of stone, stucco or frame. IT IS
said that Yorkship's order for BRICK
was the largest of its kind ever
given. 1t is being furnished by hVe
different manufacturers, and WILL 90
varied in color to prevent monotony.
The majority Of the houses nave
slate roofs. Four kinds Of rooflng
material are being used. These IN
clude new one, which so success
fully gives the effect of old-fash.
loned ribbed copper or red tin tns' ma
only an expert can detect the ch.
ference. One group Of houses nss
gable roofs, another fiat roofs, anu
another roofs like those on the GU
Colonial houses of Salem and Pof~
mouth. ,
Another device by which MI.
Litchfield has fought samentss is 'ns
use of twenty different types u
porches. -,
The plan provides for orosl a;'I
streets and drives. The streets wSs
be named for American naval heIo.s
or for famous American ships. lns.s