Lustron House at 547 Oak Avenue
Why it's listed
Built around 1949 in Americus, Georgia, this one-story, side-gabled ranch house is a Lustron, a prefabricated home made of porcelain-enameled steel. It was erected by the Hav-A-Home Lustron franchise of Albany and is one of 22 built in Georgia and 2,498 produced nationwide. The 1,085-square-foot Westchester Deluxe two-bedroom model has tan two-foot-square exterior panels, dark blue tile-like roof shingles, aluminum casement windows and a bay window in the living room. Inside, steel panels cover the walls and ceilings, and built-in steel furniture, a buffet with pass-through, and sliding doors remain. It is considered significant as an intact example of postwar prefabricated housing, an innovative response to the housing shortage after World War II, and as a modern, functional design that departed from revival-style homes. Although less than fifty years old at the time of listing, it was accepted because recent research on Lustron houses allows objective evaluation.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues it is an excellent, intact example of post-World War II prefabricated housing using porcelain-enameled steel panels. It meets Criterion A for its link to postwar efforts to relieve the housing shortage and Criterion C as a creative prefabricated design. It is one of 22 Lustron houses built in Georgia.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 96000209, listed March 18, 1996. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 547 Oak Ave., Americus |
|---|---|
| County | Sumter County |
| Listed | March 18, 1996 |
| Reference number | 96000209 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | c. 1949 |
| Architect / builder | Roy Blass and Morris Beckman - Illinois architects (designed prototype for the Porcelain Products Company, later renamed Lustron Corporation) |
| Architectural style | Other: Lustron |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Engineering |
| Level of significance | National, State, Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a single dwelling; the form says it retains complete structural and architectural integrity, though the original combination dishwasher/clothes washer was removed. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Within district | Americus Historic District |
| Coordinates | 32.06357, -84.23533 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 96000209.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q134457576
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.