{"nrhp_refnum":"80002698","name":"Lescaze House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"211 E. 48th St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"New York","county":"Manhattan","state":"NY","lat":40.75440070500008,"lon":-73.97086813099997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-05-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A combined residence and architectural office at 211 East 48th Street in Manhattan, created in 1933-34 when architect William Lescaze remodelled an Italianate brownstone into a modern house for himself.","why_significant":"It embodies the theory and practice of William Lescaze, an influential exponent of the modern movement and the International Style. The narrow site was developed with rational planning that separated office and residence. It also incorporated early technology, including the first residential use of central air conditioning and early use of glass bricks and blocks.","narrative":"Squeezed onto a narrow lot on East 48th Street in Manhattan, this house and office was created in 1933-34 when Swiss-born architect William Lescaze remodelled an Italianate brownstone for his own use. Its smooth gray stucco facade, ribbon windows and large panels of glass block set it apart from neighboring Victorian townhouses. The architect's office sits at street level behind a glass brick wall, while the living quarters occupy the three floors above, with a skylit living room at the top. The design reflects International Style ideas, including geometric precision, absence of applied ornament and flat roofs used as outdoor space, influenced by Le Corbusier. The house included the first residential use of central air conditioning and an early use of glass bricks and blocks as structural material. Lescaze, who had earlier designed the Philadelphia Savings Fund Society Building with George Howe, is presented as a leading figure of modern architecture, and the house as a prototype of his approach.","period_of_significance":"1933-34","architect_builder":"William Lescaze","architectural_style":"International Style (modern movement)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied as a private residence; in excellent condition, altered, and on its original site. The widow of the architect has maintained it and its furnishings as they were when he lived there.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:42.21707-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/80002698.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002698/a4f39ee671-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002698/a4f39ee671-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Americasroof at English Wikipedia","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Renz-ny.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Americasroof at English Wikipedia</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Renz-ny.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75319684","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lescaze_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6405789"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/manhattan/lescaze-house-80002698/"}