A 'prefab', a temporary house erected for families made homeless though the bombing raids of World War II. After the Second World War much of the demand for new housing was met by prefabrication, offering various types of industrialised building systems. The committee considered which meth-ods and materials would be most cost-effective and efficient for providing houses after war damage in Similarly to a manufactured home, a modular home is built inside a climate-controlled home building facility that uses efficient processes and quality materials. ‘Prefabs’ were temporary homes built in the factory at the close of the Second World War. but what’s the real difference between the two. Between 1945 and 1951, an estimated 1.2 million new prefab houses were constructed. At the turn of the 20th century, Sears® began to see an opportunity to sell more than just finished goods. Modular Home Plans and Prices List. It also provides links to 13 individual, downloadable articles I prepared on specific types of post-WW II prefabricated aluminum and steel houses manufactured in the US, UK and France. Question on post-war prefabricated houses. Legal | Privacy | Privacy Notice for California Residents. Assembly line innovations allowed for home builders like Gunnison Housing Corporation and Lustron Corporation to take off, creating prefabricated homes in building facilities. And with the help of technological advances and specifically, computer-assisted design (CAD) programs, modular homes have only improved! After the end of World War II, the popularity of off-site built housing grew immensely. You’ve heard the names “manufactured” and “modular” used interchangeably, but what’s the real difference between the two? "The House Americas Been Waiting For" Because of the war and the 12-year depression preceding it, very few new homes had been built since 1929, resulting in a severe housing shortage for soldiers returning from WWII. The Museum currently has over 27 different structures which have been rescued and re-built over the last five decades including a timber framed merchant’s house, a windmill, a church and a granary to name but a few. Loved and mostly inhabited 70 yeas after they were built, it's the largest collection of listed prefabs in the country. Find out more about us or get in touch. He used catchy phrases and customer testimonials to tell readers that Sears, Roebuck and Company had the cheapest prices for high-value products. An early version of a prefab home was sent from England in the 1600s, but real prefabrication did not take off until the arrival of "house kits." These growing needs are what caused the modular housing industry to boom. They were built to rehouse those who had lost their homes during the Blitz or servicemen coming back from the war and their young families. Airey Houses (1943-1950) In a similar vein to Addison homes, these prefabricated homes were built en masse after the second world war. The Excalibur estate in 2004 © Elisabeth Blanchet As a result of inflation and some unexpected costs, ‘only’ 156,000 prefab houses were built in the UK, predominantly in cities and towns that had been heavily bombed during the war. This article focuses on housing constructed during the decade or so after the end of the Second World War as part of the progressive, experimental establishment of the Welfare State in Britain. Over a million were evacuated from towns and cities and had to adjust to separation from family and friends. The people's palaces: 70 years on Britain's prefabricated houses are still home to many. The Luftwaffe's destruction of London during the Blitz forced housing authorities to follow the American fashion for prefabricated buildings. In the following years, manufactured homes and modular homes have continued to become more efficient, durable and stylish. Do you ever wonder what a Clayton home building facility looks like? The 1944 Housing Act authorised the Government to … Prefab homes today With the help of Richard Sears’ ingenious advertising techniques and the introduction of the assembly line by Henry Ford, manufactured homes began to surface as a housing possibility available to the general public. Some are still in use today. Check out where our homes are made! This was the first step to the modular housing we know today. Mk.V Pre-Fab Living room fireplace - Avoncroft Museum over a million were evacuated towns. The real difference between the two bedroom houses complete with plumbing and heating, families larger... 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