Bishop Family Lustron House
Also known as: Lustron Westchester Model Serial # 01458
Why it's listed
This two-bedroom house at 26 Slater Drive in Glenville, New York, is a Lustron Westchester Deluxe model, built in November 1949 from factory-made porcelain-enameled steel panels on a concrete slab. Its gray steel walls, steel roof shingles, zigzag downspouts and built-in steel cabinetry survive largely as originally installed, and the original asphalt tile flooring remains under carpeting. Harold and Lillian Bishop bought the house new, and the family has kept it with unusual care ever since. It is regarded as the best surviving Lustron house in Glenville and one of the best-preserved in New York State. The house also illustrates Glenville's change from farmland to a suburb for General Electric workers and returning veterans. More broadly, it represents Carl Strandlund's effort to answer the postwar housing shortage with mass-produced steel homes, an effort that ended when the company collapsed in 1950 after fewer than 2,600 houses were shipped.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a remarkably intact example of the Lustron Corporation's Westchester Deluxe model and one of the best-preserved Lustron houses in New York State. It is tied to Glenville's post-World War II shift from farming community to suburb. It also reflects the engineering of assembly-line housing and the aspirations of the emerging middle class.
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 08000144, listed March 6, 2008. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 26 Slater Dr., Schenectady |
|---|---|
| County | Schenectady County |
| Listed | March 6, 2008 |
| Reference number | 08000144 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1949-1950 |
| Architect / builder | Carl Strandlund-Inventor, Roy Blass & MH Beckman-Architects; Richard Bartlet, Contractor, Scotia, N.Y. |
| Architectural style | Modern movement prefab: Lustron Westchester |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Engineering, Industry, Social History |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Remains in use as a single-family dwelling with a very high degree of integrity; original interior plan, materials and kitchen cabinetry are intact, though the bathroom pocket door was replaced with a wood door. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Coordinates | 42.88891, -73.91395 (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 08000144.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4917548
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.