national database of sears homes

Rebecca lives in Elgin, Illinois, and undertook a huge research project, to find, and document, kit houses in that town. 2023 Trib Total Media | All Rights Reserved. Thanks! Sadly, surviving Argyles do tend to be heavily altered there are probably lots more hiding in plain sight. Call me a cynic, but I often wonder why kit houses were not stolen. Text information is available through RareFind 5 and provides essential information about special status species and occurrences. She searched the Sears Home archive until she found a catalog with a photo and description of her home. Rosemary Thornton Sears discontinued its Modern Homes catalog after 1940, though sales through local sales offices continued into 1942. Buyers could hire a contractor to assemble their home or build it themselves following the detailed instructions that were included. I have seen articles throughout the years about Sears homes in the Pittsburgh area, she wrote after reading the Trib story. As its mail-order catalogs were already sent to millions of homes, Sears had a distinct advantage over other kit-home competitors. Sears Is Crumbling, but These 9 Sears Catalog Homes Stand Tall Images of Sears Homes Looking at the sorry state of Americas rail infrastructure today, this also makes me weep although today theyd just be delivered via truck. According to a review written by Mary Ann O'Boyle of Takoma Park, Maryland, her Sears home feels "unabashedly American, the kind of house you see in movies about the good old days" and "allows me to connect with the past". So, each house that we find through these records, represents a great deal of digging, and lots of amassed knowledge in how to attack the task because each county's records system is a little different than others. But David Betcone told us what model was in first place as of 1931. Researching Historic Kit and Plan Book Homes, We started looking around La Porte, Indiana, in 2015. Park, MD. Price: $179,900. The iron strapping itself can be strait or curved, but the curlicue is always there, if it's iron strapping from Sears. Prefab homes arent exactly an exotic concept nowadays. We found and listed about three houses, I think but didn't really focus on La Porte much more than that day in 2015. In 1916, Sears began shipping pre-cut lumber in its mail-order kit homes that contained stamped numbers used to match pieces during construction. A recent Tribune-Review story about a 1922 Sears mail-order home in McCandless that has most of its original features intact drew scores of letters and comments from Pittsburgh area residents interested in learning more about the unique role these houses played in U.S. history. Its not like nowadays where you move, wait for your stuff to arrive, and if youre a work-at-home like me, youre pretty much unable to work while you wait for a technician to ensure you have Internet access. , something that piqued my interest was the idea that you could buy literal houses from the catalog. Sears provided "capital and materials", on the condition that lots and foundations were already in place. Goodwall sheet plaster was an early drywall-like product offered by Sears and may be an indication of a Sears Modern Home. Their blueprints were based on what was popular at the time and while they werent the first or only company to do mail-order houses, theyre among the most memorable because you could buy damn near anything in their 500+ page catalogs. One final note about our list: as I've mentioned, our list includes, for the most part, homes that we have located, ourselves, but also those that we have learned about from other people. [6] Plumbing, electrical fixtures, and heating systems were options that could be ordered at additional cost; they were many families' first steps to modern HVAC systems, kitchens, and bathrooms. . House was moved to Carbondale, CO in about 1972, Still trying to find more info.. Either way, these houses offered variety and quality even if they werent necessarily innovative. According to the US Census, there were about 88.7 million people living in the United States. I think the reason the Sears house is so interesting is that most people associate them with the Wish Book catalog that came in the mail at Christmas. Some models were offered with variations, the most common of those being expanded floor plans and additional finished living spaces. 175, 1911/12 catalog image for the Sears Modern Home No. However, based on what the experts said in that Atlas Obscura piece, youre most likely to find Sears homes in places where railroad stations once stood (or are lucky to still have) and where Sears factories had a major role on the local economy, like Cincinnati. 159 has two full stories on that non-porch side of the house. In addition to home building costs being up to 40% lower than traditional building, you also had the option to bring your own blueprints to Sears to get them modified for far less than itd comparatively cost to go to a builder or architect today. My uncle mentioned that he had found some shipping labels from Sears in the house and when we asked my grandmother about it, she said: Oh, yes, we ordered it from the Sears catalog, Chabot said. Sears licensed the plans for the Argyle from a. real estate builder/developer named Jud Yoho. If my house is not a kit, where did it come from? Many included the latest technology available to house buyers in the early part of the twentieth century, such as central heating, indoor plumbing, telephone, and electricity. Not all Sears houses became private residences. The Preservation Commission has identified a majority of the styles, but since many are modified it can be hard to tell. contacting them by clicking on their name. Images are available You can contact Rose through her Facebook group, "Sears Kit Homes" or email: Magnolia2047@gmail.com. 172, later marketed as the. However, many houses described as Sears Homes are not true Sears Homes, being either the product of another kit home manufacturer or not a kit home at all. 1232 click. Teen hikers rescued after days stuck in California snowstorm easier. Kmart History | Search Archives | Sears Holdings Alumni | sears.com | kmart.com : Thursday, Mar. Before 1916, the home builder had to cut their Sears-supplied lumber to appropriate lengths. 217 (early Starlight), Sears Modern Home No, 126, on the left, at 808 W 11th Street, La Porte, Indiana, On the right, Sears Modern Home No. In 1908, Sears issued its first specialty catalog for houses, Book of Modern Homes and Building Plans, featuring 44 house styles ranging in price from US $360$2,890. Our research team especially loves searching Pennsylvania for Sears houses because there are so many there, Chabot said. Built around 1917 home resembles the Hazelton Model C2025,l 1915-1920 and the Vallonia Model P13049A or P13049B, 1927-1932. CNDDB Maps and Data - California Department of Fish and Wildlife BMO, LAFC, and Angel City FC leaders were joined by special guests Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Mia Hamm for the . To see a variety of models similar to the Mitchell, that were offered during the kit-house era, see this article. As I detailed in the account of the rise and fall of the Sears empire, this literally led them to become the largest retailer in America because they had so many burners going at onceand their Modern Homes kits, and even the home buying process itself, were part of that in addition to catalog and retail sales. We have a database of all the models that have been identified nationwide to date. But what if you want something bigger than a tiny house, but not as gargantuan as the average American single family home? True to the companys roots in selling to rural Midwesterners, they even had a catalog for farmhouses, barns, and other barn buildings. Without authentication, however, we can't be 100% certain that this house was ordered from Sears, as numerous kit and non-kit companies offered a very similar model, and these kinds of stories that are passed down over time, often turn out to be mistaken (with the house actually being a model from a different kit company, or simply resembling a model offered by Sears). People need move-in ready housing and they need it fast, whether single professionals are seeking apartments and luxury condos or families need affordable freestanding houses. This table provides a Streetview link for each house (or, occasionally, a real estate listing link), and, for houses I've shown, but not provided a catalog image of, you'll find a link to a catalog image, as well. During the Modern Homes program, large quantities of asphalt shingles became available. , in addition to Aladdin and Montgomery Ward homes. How Many Sears Houses Are Still Out There? 5 Jun. They raised four kids in that house, Steel wrote. . Sears houses can be identified or authenticated using the following methods. They werent all the 3-bedroom Craftsman ranch style you see throughout Los Angeles or the compact Levittowners in Pennsylvania and Long Island to the east: the Atlanta and Chateau models were probably the great-grandaddy of the modern McMansion, with the Malden model being its odd little cousin that sits in the potato salad at the family reunion, what with the odd arrangement of dormer windows although they arent fake. They werent all the 3-bedroom Craftsman ranch style you see throughout Los Angeles or the compact Levittowners in Pennsylvania and Long Island to the east: the, models were probably the great-grandaddy of the modern McMansion, with the, model being its odd little cousin that sits in the potato salad at the family reunion, what with the odd arrangement of, True to the companys roots in selling to rural Midwesterners, they even had a catalog for farmhouses, barns, and other barn buildings. Really, they couldn't find any space in there for the Modern Homes records? Our national database of Sears houses in the U.S. has over 13,500 homes on it, and, after Ohio and Illinois, Pennsylvania is No. Sears houses could also be ordered with reversed floor plans. Construction of the houses took nine months which were completed in 1919. Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois in particular are your best bet for finding Sears homes although Newark, New Jersey apparently still has a couple. The. This picture came from an original set of Sears "Honor Bilt" blueprints. Simple theme. I think that we had only a handful of houses already on the list a few. 168/Matoka, 301 Weller Avenue, La Porte, Indiana probable Sears Modern Home No. But the houses don't match any of the designs that Sears sold in their catalogs. At Greenlawn Cemetery, near the Hampton Roads waterfront in the Newport News, Virginia, area, the cemetery office building is a 1936 Sears Modern Home. My home reminds me of that type of architecture.. to you on Flickr or Pinterest. Lara was joined by researcher Cindy Catanzaro, who researches especially in Ohio, and writes the blog. Catarina is quite well informed about Sears houses in the D.C. area, but also has researched the origins of many of the Lewis Homes kit homes in the area. Thanks for giving me a new appreciation for the Argyle! hennessy privilege limited edition / what is mc hammer doing now 2020 / national database of sears homes. . Tasty Soft Garlic and Herb Bread Sticks Recipe How to Make it in 23 Simple Steps, Villa Faberge! While I'm at it, I'll tell you a bit about our mission, as a research team. Sometimes the legal description is nice and straightforward, like, "lot 15, block C, Tanglewood Estates, in the town of Dunham". The suburbs of Philadelphia are not the only places where we find Sears houses, by the way. This is what these two models look like, in the catalogs (these are from the 1911/1912 catalog): Up until this point, we weren't really sure what the difference was between these two models.

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