Sears Modern Homes: House Kits from Catalogs
April 21, 2008
Can you imagine being able to flip through a SEARS, ROEBUCK AND CO. catalog full of house plans, choose one like this charming “Puritan” model, and buy it for as little as $1,500?
Sears sold Modern Homes kits like this one between 1908-1940. Each kit contained between 10,000-30,000 pieces with which you could build your house. They were shipped on boxcars, so you’d go to the railroad station to pick it up. Blueprints were drawn so that novice homebuilders could understand them and came with a 75-page instruction book explaining how to put everything together.
The catalogs assured customers that “a man of average abilities could assemble a Sears kit home in about 90 days.” About half of the kit homes were built by professional homebuilders, but those who did it themselves saved about 30% off the cost of a conventionally built home. In 1908, a contractor charged about $450 to put a kit together. Even then it was considered a bargain.
To see photos of Sears Kit Houses then and now, click “more” below:
The Sears catalog homes were made with the finest materials, including cypress for all exterior components like the window trim and clapboard, and first-growth, top-grade southern yellow pine for framing. Kitchen and bath floors were solid tongue and groove maple.
According to Rosemary Thornton, who writes extensively on the topic:
A Crescent home was built in Libertyville, Illinois in 1929, and here’s what it looks like today:
An example of another “Crescent” model that has since been remodeled to include an addition, including an attached garage:
Here’s the Lewiston model, which was offered between 1929 and 1939:
And a photo of one of a Lewiston as it looks today (built in 1932):
The Barrington model, which was sold between 1926-1929, was billed as an example of “English-style architecture:”
Here’s an example of a Barrington home today with a brick exterior:
This was the Mitchell model, sold between 1928-1940:
Here’s a Mitchell, built in 1928, as it stands today:
This model was called “Puritan” and featured “Six or Seven Rooms, Bath, and Porch.” It was sold from 1922-1929:
Here’s a Puritan today in Libertyville, Illinois:
And another Puritan with the original siding (built in 1926):
Do you have a favorite model of these shown here?
What fascinates me is how so many of these houses shaped our American ideas of what “home” should look like, even though the last one was built in 1940.
If you have ever lived in a Sears Catalog house, please tell us about it (and send photos, if possible!). Thanks to Maya of Springtree Road who gave me the idea for this post and sent me lots of links to get started. This was a fun post to research! I hope you enjoyed learning about these houses as much as I did.
- The Spite House in Virginia (only 7 feet wide!).
- Cobble Court, a manor built to look like a French-Norman estate
- Stokesay Court, the estate used in the Keira Knightley film “Atonement”
- Coco Chanel’s elegant Parisian apartment at 31 Rue Cambon
- 1908 Gaslight Mansion in St. Louis
- Mark Twain’s Tiffany-Decorated Mansion in Hartford, Connecticut
- Toronto’s Little House (which is even smaller than the Spite House)
- Dolly Parton’s Childhood Home in Tennessee
Entry Filed under: Historical Homes. Tags: Decorating, Real Estate, houses, Architecture, historic homes, Craftsman, arts and crafts, Sears, catalog, kits, Sears Catalog Homes, early 1900s, bungalows, Illinois.
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1.
JLB | April 21, 2008 at 10:47 pm
This is now officially my favorite blog on the planet! This post made me cry… I am from Savannah Georgia (currently living in NJ) and there are tons of these houses there…It reminded me so much of home I just started to tear up…was already feeling a little homesick.
2.
Class of 56 | April 21, 2008 at 11:06 pm
I also get a lump in my throat when I see those designs. They are some of may favorite looks. I guess I am just a Puritan at heart because those models have always appealed to me.
My Aunt Lelah lived in a Lewiston or one modeled like it and I thought it was something only rich folks had. I think we rented a Sears House in Illinois when we first married. At least the old folks called it a Sears. It had a big porch like the first model but was one story.
We have an oak Sears Wardrobe knock down that was shipped by rail during the same period. The Antique dealer said it was built around the turn of the century. (1900)
I really admire the ingenuity and craftsmanship of Americans. This allowed our ancestors to have quality houses all across America and the country settled with a society quite fast.
3.
maya | April 22, 2008 at 7:20 am
I love the Crescent and the Mitchell, but really, I love them all. Having a beautiful home at a reasonable price - what more could a person ask for?
I’m sure building houses is too complex now to be able to do the same thing, but wouldn’t it be lovely if you could?
4.
Marie | April 22, 2008 at 7:28 am
I love the Puritan! That first house (the 10 room one) looks pretty sweet with that front and back porch. I’ve heard of these homes and I’ve seen them…just never so many examples in one place! Love it!!
5.
Liz | April 22, 2008 at 10:22 am
One of the things I admire about Sears homes and the era in which they were built is that Americans were FINE with living in a house they ordered from a catalog that arrived on a train and that had an interior and exterior everyone with which everyone would be familiar. Somehow, no matter how similar the process of going to a builder and selecting flooring and lighting options, I just can’t imagine anyone doing it today. Particularly when there are 15 year olds out there who wouldn’t be caught dead in clothes from Sears.
I wonder how much it would cost now to build a Sears home with the same quality materials and specs?
6.
fat stylist | April 22, 2008 at 10:30 am
I’m kind of fascinated by mail order houses of the past. These Sears houses are good examples. Neat find!
7.
Sallie | April 22, 2008 at 11:19 am
My husband and I were just about to lease (with an opportunity to buy) a Sears house in North Carolina. Someone snatched it up before we moved there. We were so sad!!
They seem like really GREAT houses!
God bless,
Sallie
8.
irishsof | April 22, 2008 at 12:38 pm
Oh, this is my favorite post of your blog for the couple months I’ve been reading it. SO interesting and well, “warm”. My fave is the Puritan model, but it was tough to choose.
9.
abbreviated | April 22, 2008 at 5:12 pm
Wonder how many people have a mail order house & a mail order bride ?
10.
janet | April 23, 2008 at 9:04 am
I have the book “Houses by Mail” by Katherine Cole Stevenson and H. Ward Jandl. It is so much fun to look at all the different styles and read the descriptions (”reflects good cheer and gracious dignity”
and I admit to cribbing some phrases when I run out of imagination for my R.E. ads. A must have book for anyone interested in architecture of the first half of the 20th century.
Janet
11.
Sherry McKinley | May 7, 2008 at 11:44 am
I’m trying to find a copy of the 75 page instruction booklet for putting the house together… I’m curious about the process, how much of the material was supplied, etc. looked on ebay, amazon, but no luck. Any suggesions?
12.
Em | May 11, 2008 at 8:56 am
I grew up in a kit house in New Jersey, although I am not sure it was a Sears. The original paperwork says “kit house.” It is a Four Square from ~1919. I love the window frames and doors etc. One of the charms of the design is that it lets in a lot of light. To our regret, my parents need to sell the house now, as it and the large yard is too much for them. I am always interested when I see a similar house elsewhere in the country.
13.
Renee | May 14, 2008 at 1:26 pm
I am the proud owner of a sears modern kit home. My grandma bought it 65 years ago and I have owned it for 14 years. I am not sure what model it is and would love someone to tell me what they think. email…xassper8ing @yahoo.com. Wisconsin.
14.
ajiga | May 21, 2008 at 9:38 am
beautiful houses