This part of the 1881 Hopkins' Atlas of Cleveland shows the status in that year of housing development on Birch (West 50th) Street (between Franklin and Bridge) which, at the time this map was drawn, was almost thirty years under way. Noticeable on the map, in addition to the number of then as yet undeveloped lots, are the number of lots splits in the Benedict and Root part of Birch Street. The developers of this subdivision had in 1852 platted sixty foot wide lots; however, as sales of lots proceeded, they found that their working class buyers often preferred to "split" the lots, building a home for themselves and their families on one half, and generating profit by selling the other half, either with or without a house on it. Learning from this, developer Dudley Baldwin, whose adjoining subdivision was platted in 1863, created 30-foot wide lots in his development. (See lots on Birch Street above the blue line on the map.) | Creator: Cleveland Historic MapsDownload Original File
