Meadowbrook

Wood Model of Meadowbrook which was almost identical to the Newport except it was two feet longer.

Meet the Meadowbrook

In late 1949, as the Lustron Corporation tried to overcome its slow start-up, it announced the new Meadowbrook model. Available in both a two bedroom (model 22) and 3 bedroom (model 33) version, the Meadowbrook was 2 feet longer and slightly more elaborate and expensive than the Newport, which was introduced at the same time. Both were aimed at a lower price point-about $2,000 less than comparable Westchester models-to be within reach of lower-end homebuyers. To do this, both the Meadowbrook and Newport came without some of the amenities included in the Westchester, such as the Thor dishwasher/clothes washer and the built-in vanity, bookcase, and china cabinet pass-through. In addition, they featured a traditional forced-air furnace that utilized vents and ducts, instead of the Westchester’s unusual plenum system. The furnace was mounted on the floor, rather than the ceiling, and heated air was circulated directly into rooms.

How to Spot a Meadowbrook…or Maybe Not.

A Peek Inside the Meadowbrook

Meadowbrooks, like Newports, are distinguished by their smaller size and their orientation: the gable end faces the front rather than the sides, as on other models. Appearing just months before the assembly line ground to a halt, few, if any, Meadowbrooks were built. A survey conducted by Thomas Fetters when writing his book, The Lustron Home, located no examples of either the 2 or 3 bedroom models.

Meadowbrook: Essentially the same as the low-budget Newport design, but 2 feet longer.

2 Bedrooms (Model 022)
Dimensions: 25 feet by 31 feet
Total size: 775 square feet
3 Bedrooms (Model 032)
Dimensions: 33 feet by 31 feet
Total size: 1,023 square feet

Sources:

“Six New Lustron Homes Introduced; Price of One Model Slashed $2,000,” Columbus Citizen, January 26, 1950.

Fetters, Tom. The Lustron Home: The History of Postwar Prefabricated Housing Experiment, 73.