Plenty of houses have been built across the southern USA before AC was common. When I lived in Tennessee, my house had a big shaded porch in front, plenty of sh

Plenty of houses have been built across the southern USA before AC was common. When I lived in Tennessee, my house had a big shaded porch in front, plenty of shade trees, and (best of all) a huge 3 ft diameter whole-house fan in the hallway ceiling that kept a nice breeze coming in through the windows. It was still uncomfortably warm on hot (and humid) summer days, but tolerable.