{"nrhp_refnum":"12001095","name":"Preston Laboratories","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"415 S. Eberhart Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Butler","county":"Butler County","state":"PA","lat":40.801134633500055,"lon":-79.94432401829475,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2012-12-26","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Science"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Preston Laboratories is an 87.5-acre former glass research facility and residence at 415 South Eberhart Road in Butler Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania. Its main laboratory was begun in 1936 and minor buildings were added in the 1950s.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that Dr. Frank W. Preston, a glass scientist, was a pioneering figure in glass fracture and bottle testing, and that the laboratory served the American glass industry during its operation. It also presents the designed landscape, shaped by Preston, as a clear expression of his scientific and naturalist interests.","narrative":"Set on an 87.5-acre property in Butler Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania, Preston Laboratories is a glass research complex begun in 1936 and built primarily through about 1947. Dr. Frank W. Preston designed the buildings, which include a main laboratory of brick and concrete, a machine shop, an instrument building and a garage, along with a curving drive, ponds and a landscape he shaped himself. The site is significant for its association with Preston, a glass scientist who developed bottle testing methods, invented testing machinery and established standards used across the glass industry. The laboratory employed about 20 to 25 people and served glass manufacturers, including Owens-Illinois. Preston retired in 1959 and sold the research business, which ended the laboratory's period of operation. He later became active in ornithology, ecology and land conservation, and the property remains a record of his work in glass science and natural history.","period_of_significance":"1936-1959","architect_builder":"Edwin Howard (architect); Dr. Frank W. Preston (designed and built the property)","architectural_style":"No style","criteria":["B"],"status_note":"Preston Laboratories was donated to Butler Township by Mrs. Preston after her death in 2008, according to the document.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:10:27.476369-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/12001095.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/12001095/cb37876687-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/12001095/cb37876687-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Preston_Laboratories_building.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Preston_Laboratories_building.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994869","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preston_Laboratories","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q137584077"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/butler-county/preston-laboratories-12001095/"}