The Enduring Appeal of Bungalow Courts
Bungalow Court on Campus Avenue in University Heights
University Heights is fortunate to be home to 70 bungalow courts built between 1920 and 1950. These courts typically consist of a series of one-story houses built on a deep single or double residential lot and oriented around a common landscaped area or court with a walkway.
Bungalow courts were (and still are) very popular among renters for providing a home-like setting without the maintenance responsibilities. They also offer greater privacy and independence than apartment buildings as well as a sense of community since units face a shared common area.
These mini-homes were built in a variety of architectural styles including Craftsman, Spanish Colonial, Egyptian, Mission Revival, Pueblo, Moorish Revival, Deco/Moderne, and 1950s modern.
Bungalow courts first appeared in Pasadena in the late 1910s and were seen as a way to address the housing shortage that followed the outbreak of World War 1 in 1914, and the Panama California Exposition in 1915-16. San Diego’s population doubled from 74,000 in 1910 to more than 147,000 in 1920.
The demand for housing and the falling cost of construction materials and labor contributed to a building boom in San Diego that began around 1923 and peaked in 1926. The surge in bungalow court construction coincided with this building boom.
Bungalow courts were typically constructed within a few blocks of streetcar lines, where small businesses were also being constructed. Easy access to the growing network of low-cost streetcar lines allowed bungalow court residents, typically working- and middle-class individuals, to travel to their places of work quickly and affordably.
There are hundreds of bungalow courts throughout San Diego based on City of San Diego historic surveys. Many of these courts are in the Uptown and North Park areas. If you own a bungalow court and would be interested in learning more about historically designating it, please email Kristin Harms at uhhs@att.net.
Incomplete Map of Bungalow Courts in San Diego based on City of San Diego History Surveys: https://www.sandiego.gov/planning/work/historic-preservation-planning/contexts