Trico Plant No. 1
Why it's listed
Trico Plant #1 occupies a block one street east of Main Street in downtown Buffalo. It grew from a former Weyand Brewery cold storage building, built around 1890 and bought in 1920 by John R. Oishei for his windshield wiper business. Between 1924 and 1937 the company added reinforced concrete buildings with white concrete piers, red brick spandrels and metal sash windows, a design known as the Daylight Factory. Plumer and Mann designed the 1924 building, and later large buildings followed the same system. Trico pediments mark rooflines, and a classical stone entrance serves the former administrative building. The nomination ties the plant to the first automobile windshield wiper blades and to Oishei, whose wealth later funded a major regional foundation. Employment rose from 35 workers to nearly 4,600 by 1950. Trico left the site in 1998, and the complex is described as partly vacant. A 1954 building with later additions is noncontributing.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the plant is an outstanding local example of the Daylight Factory type of reinforced concrete construction. It is also tied to Trico's role in the automotive industry as maker of the first windshield wiper blades, and to John R. Oishei, the company founder and later philanthropist. It was also one of Buffalo's major employers during the Depression and after.
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 01000053, listed February 2, 2001. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 817 Washinton St., Buffalo |
|---|---|
| County | Erie County |
| Listed | February 2, 2001 |
| Reference number | 01000053 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1920-1950 |
| Architect / builder | Plumer and Mann Engineers and Architects of Buffalo, NY; Burton and Ellicott of Buffalo, NY |
| Architectural style | OTHER/Daylight Factory |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Industry |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as partly vacant; Trico left the historic building in 1998. Building 9 has been converted from factory to office use. |
| Acreage | 7.8 |
| Coordinates | 42.89495, -78.86922 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary: it recognises significance and does not restrict what a private owner may do without federal money or permits. It unlocks the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit for income-producing buildings, state credits in many states, and Section 106 review when federal agencies are involved. See what listing means in practice.
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 01000053.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7841234
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.