Cordts Mansion
Also known as: Edgewood Terrace
Why it's listed
Perched on a hill above the Hudson River in Kingston, this brick mansion was built in 1873 for John H. Cordts, a brick merchant and co-founder of the firm Cordts and Hutton. It is a three-story Second Empire house with a slate concave mansard roof, hooded dormers, iron cresting with fleur de lys finials, bracketed cornices, a columned porch and a central tower. Inside are 28 rooms, including two parlors, an ornate ribbed-ceiling dining room and a main staircase with faceted newel posts. The grounds hold a mansard-roofed carriage house, a caretaker's apartment and two gazebos. The property is recognized for its architecture, as a well-preserved example of a style popular after the Civil War, and for its link to the Hudson River brick industry, whose products fed New York City's building boom. The house stayed in one family until the 1980s, which kept structural changes to a minimum.
Significance in brief: The mansion is presented as an outstanding example of Second Empire architecture, with its concave mansard roof, tower, iron cresting and bracketed cornices. It is also tied to the Hudson River brick industry through Cordts and Hutton, the brick firm Cordts co-founded in 1865. The industry supplied the bricks for New York City's 19th-century building expansion.
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 07001039, listed October 3, 2007. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 82-152 Lindsley Ave., Kingston |
|---|---|
| County | Ulster County |
| Listed | October 3, 2007 |
| Reference number | 07001039 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1873-1913 |
| Architect / builder | not known |
| Architectural style | Dutch Colonial vernacular; Second Empire |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Industry |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Used as a single-family residence; it was a bed and breakfast in the 1990s and has been kept in its historic character with little structural alteration. |
| Acreage | 9 |
| Coordinates | 41.92951, -73.97225 (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 07001039.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5170070
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.