58 Washington Ave Schenectady

John Glen Jr. House.

Constructed possibly as early as 1762, this house was built as the home of John Glen, Jr., on property that he acquired from his father-in-law, Symon Johannese Vedder in 1761.  Glen served as quartermaster in Schenectady during both the French and Indian and Revolutionary Wars.  His younger brother, Colonel Henry Glen, was a member of Congress from this district during 1793-1801, and lived in a house that stood on the site of Nos. 2 and 4 Union Street that was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1819.  It is reputed that General George Washington stayed overnight at the house of John Glen Jr. when he visited Schenectady in 1775. Originally two stories in height, a third floor was added in the third quarter of the 19th century when the house was “modernized” into a Second Empire style dwelling with a mansard roof and dormers, squared bay window over the entrance door, ornamental lintels above windows, and a bracketed cornice.  The house was damaged by fire in 1902 and again modified when the mansard roof was removed, the brick façade extended to the third floor, window openings rebuilt with simple arched brick lintels installed above reduced openings, and the porte cochere and second floor of the south wing were added. Brick masonry in the first and second floor façades was laid in an English cross bond pattern, characterized by alternating courses of stretchers and headers, while the third floor was laid in American common bond in which header courses occur only every sixth course.  The differences can be observed by looking closely at the painted brickwork.  The house originally may have had a wide central hall that was somewhat similar to that which can be found in Johnson Hall in Johnstown, NY.  At each side of the front entry bricked-in former window openings surmounted by splayed brick flat arch lintels are visible at the first and second floors.  Some idea of the extent and size of the adjacent former window openings can be observed in the areas of disturbed brickwork around and above the existing window openings at the first and second floors.

Click Here for a more information about this topic at the Schenectady County Historical Society.