The Lustron houses were prefabricated steel houses developed in the post-World War II era United States in response to the shortage of houses for returning GIs.

In 1947, Chicago industrialist and inventor Carl Strandlund, who had worked with constructing prefabricated gas stations, obtained a multimillion-dollar Reconstruction Finance Corporation loan to manufacture steel houses with enamel-coated panels. The steel in the houses was an original design, including both steel framing and steel interior walls and ceiling, whereas most other houses at that time were constructed with wood framing and plaster walls. The promise of steel included sturdier construction, reduced maintenance, and ease of prefabrication. In addition, the houses were billed as rodent-proof, fire-proof, lightning-proof, rust-proof and maintenance-free.

Strandlund's Lustron Corporation constructed over 2,500 Lustron homes between 1948 and 1950 in the former Curtiss-Wright plant in Columbus, Ohio. (The plant would later be returned to aircraft production by North American Aviation as Air Force Plant 85.) The houses would sell for between $8,500 and $9,500, according to a March 1949 article in the Columbus Dispatch—about 25% less than comparable conventional housing. By November 1949, the average selling price had come up to $10,500.

The most identifying Lustron feature is the "1950s Moderne" zig-zag pillar on the home's front and back corners. In the two bedroom Westchester models, the pillar supports the overhang in the porch cutout area. For various reasons this feature was removed by many owners. Indeed, a Lustron home with its zig-zag pillars intact is becoming a rarer sight. This feature, more than any others, announces the 1950s and Lustron.

The Lustron Corporation declared bankruptcy in 1950.

Source: Wikipedia

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