A Polish flat (sometimes referred to as a German duplex) is a two-

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. ...

with separate entrances, with the units stacked on top of one another instead of side by side. Most homes of this type were constructed in the early 20th century. Portage Park Two Flat

Constructing the units in two stages balanced affordability and quality. The new Polish immigrants, as soon as they could afford to do so, would purchase a small one-story or story-and-a-half cottage, or sometimes build one on a vacant lot with minimum cost, with a modest Victorian Gothic or Queen Anne façade. When they saved again, they would then raise the frame up on jacks creating a partially sunken basement, excavate the area underneath, pour a concrete floor, build foundation walls with masonry, then set the old frame back down over the new apartment. This arrangement enabled a family of limited means to end up with both a home and a modestly priced

rental Renting, also known as hiring or letting, is an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property owned by another. A gross lease is when the tenant pays a flat rental amount and the landlord pays for a ...

apartment An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ma ...

unit. Most of the remaining Polish flats are found in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

. Since

Polish American Polish Americans ( pl, Polonia amerykańska) are Americans who either have total or partial Polish ancestry, or are citizens of the Republic of Poland. There are an estimated 9.15 million self-identified Polish Americans, representing about 2.83 ...

immigrants prized land ownership in their own

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

, this solution which was prominent in the areas they settled in came to be associated with them. Similar housing was common in many Detroit neighborhoods built before World War II. Polish flats were "specifically designed both to accommodate and to accelerate the economic improvement of the family... Polish flats were human values reflected in architecture and testified to the hard work, practicality, and optimism of their inhabitants," wrote former Milwaukee mayor John Norquist in his book, ''The Wealth of Cities.''

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20081011091927/http://www.huduser.org/periodicals/fieldworks/0800/fworks1.html * http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/hp/register/viewSummary.asp?refnum=03001486 * http://www.retrocom.com/retromilw/milwaukee.htm *"Polish Flat", Judith Kenny & Thomas C. Hubka (2016). ''Encyclopedia of Milwaukee'' https://emke.uwm.edu/entry/polish-flat/ Buildings and structures in Milwaukee Polish-American history {{Realestate-stub

See also

References

External links