Building Permits

The emergence of building permits in 19th-century American cities and towns has not been well studied as far as I am aware. I believe Philadelphia was issuing building permits as early as the 1830s. Camden, New Jersey, was issuing building permits during the Civil War years. I have not studied the statutory basis for these actions, nor whether they were tied in the beginning to building inspections or construction standards enforcement. Plainfield, New Jersey, began issuing building permits in 1896, and 20th-century examples of towns and cities that required permits for new buildings are not hard to find.

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