Lord & Burnham Building

The Lord and Burnham Building is a late Victorian, Queen Anne style factory located on the banks of the Hudson River in Irvington. In 1856, the Fredrick A. Lord established the Lord’s Horticultural Manufacturing Company. Originally an architect, Lord started out building wood and glass greenhouses as an avocation for himself, family and friends. In 1872, he made his son-in-law William Addison Burnham a partner. 

Frederick Lord’s company received national attention in 1881 when railroad tycoon Jay Gould commissioned the company to rebuild the greenhouse at Lyndhurst which had burned. It was one of the largest in the country and the first iron-framed greenhouse. While they were working on the new Lyndhurst greenhouse their own factory also burned down and had to be rebuilt. The reconstructed factory was split between, the administration building which was rebuilt as a three story classic Queen Anne structure and the factory was rebuilt in plain brick in a separate wing.

The Gould contract had made the company famous and brought many other commissions. This success allowed the factory to expand and diversify, as early as 1886, a shipping dock, lumber yard and a warehouse were added. Fredrick Lord died in 1890, just before passing he changed the company’s name to Lord & Burnham Co. and made William Burnham the president. Burnham continued to expand the factory in 1894, erecting more buildings on landfill along the shore. The expansion would pause in Irvington because in 1914 Lord & Burnham Co. established a factory in St.Catherines, Ontario, where they began manufacturing greenhouses. 

Lord & Burnham Co. remained in business until 1988 when they closed their doors. During its 132 years of business Lord & Burnham Co. was by far the largest industry in Irvington known for both technical innovation and quality. Their most famous commissioned greenhouse can still be seen today at Jay Gould’s Lyndhurst Estate. Their factory in Irvington has been sold and converted for multi-use. The first floor of the administration building is now occupied by the Irvington Public Library and the upper floors were remodeled for affordable living.

1. Lord & Burnham Building, National Register of Historic Places. Accessed October 8th 2020.
2. Lord&Burnham Greenhouses. Accessed October 19th 2020. https://lordandburnham.com/lord_burnham.html.
3. Williams, Gray. Jackson, Kenneth T.. Picturing Our Past National Register Sites in Westchester County. New York. 2003.
4. Yasinac, Rob. LORD and BURNHAM OFFICE and FACTORY Irvington, new York, hudsonvalleyruins.org. Accessed October 19th 2020. http://www.hudsonvalleyruins.org/yasinsac/hvarch/lordburnham.html.