Located in the Northwest corner of Roseland community of the City of Chicago, Princeton Park is a community of single family homes built in 1944. Originally, it was a subdivision of low cost multi-family row houses between 91st and 95th streets and Wentworth and Harvard streets. The eastern boundary later extended to State Street (now the Dan Ryan Expressway). This area includes single family homes, classic bungalows, that were part of the Lilydale community.
The project was the creation of banker/real estate developer Donald O'Toole[1]. The land had previously been used for farming by the primarily Dutch settlers in the Roseland area. In the early 1900's, Roseland transitioned from a farming community to an urban residential neighborhood. As one of the last remaining open spaces it was primed for development. The low cost housing was marketed exclusively to the African-American community making it the first established black community in Roseland. It remains a segregated African-American community today.
Once established, Princeton Park was on the leading edge of the ensuing "panic peddling" that engulfed Roseland. Unscrupulous realtors used scare tactics such as Blockbusting to frighten and intimidate white residents; churning the real estate market for quick profits. As suburban housing and commuting became more accessible in the 1960's and '70's, middle class whites left the Roseland area resulting in a total ethnic transformation.
http://www.dreamtown.com/neighborhoods/princeton-park.html
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