When a Sears House is not a Sears house

A local street is named for the Sears mail order kit houses: Sears House Court, Ellicott City. But, the 1921 house was actually by Gordon Van Tine Co. of Iowa. The wood was precut for every part of the house and numbered. Then the 'kit' was sent by train to be assembled by owner or local craftsman. More on the Sears House Court house (pictured); a small 2-family bungalow in EC, and some ways to detect if a house you've seen or own is a true kit house.


My venture into ready-cut kit houses started when I noticed the "Sears House Court" street sign, which I have driven past for years. Initially this post was to be a grouping of some Sears houses, but... thanks to Ray Haislip who was able to tell me that the 'kit homes' I found through HABS/Md Historic Properties actually were not. He has spent years studying the kit homes of Ellicott City and elsewhere and had already thouroughly studied the falsely labeled ones I found.

Kit houses, ready-cut homes, pre-cut houses, Knocked-down houses, catalog houses, mail order houses, houses by mail or the generic "Sears homes" are some of the terms used for these houses.

As always, click to enlarge images.

Gordon Van Tine Co.'s "ready-cut homes," based in Davenport, Iowa, was just one competitor of Sears mail order houses. Thirty years ago, the developer of the property around this house used the generic term "Sears house" for house designs found in catalogs. More info on this house at Oklahoma Houses By Mail blog HERE.

4120 Sears House Ct. 1921 /was: 3979 Old Columbia Pike

In 1921, John Adams, a retired railroad engineer, had Gordon Van Tine Co.'s model 518, called a five bedroom farm house (4 upstairs, 1 on main floor or den with living room, dining room and kitchen) built on his seven acre farm. Sal (1935- ) and Cecilia Casciaro sold it by 1994 to Orchard Development Company (developer L. Earl Armiger) who planned to build houses and converted the home into office space (looks like now back to being a home). Armiger said he took out the oil furnance and steam radiators, the barn was removed, a small building out back (pump house?) he thought looked like it might have been over a well. A small room was added in the back.

SOURCES - HABS HO-624 Casciaro House HERE; more info at Oklahoma Houses By Mail blog HERE; Baltimore Sun Oct 31, 1994 HERE


SEARS KIT HOUSE?... or not

Like so many other homes that are falsely claimed to be pre-cut houses, the "Sears house" below may have been from a blueprint and locally obtained lumber cut onsite. It is an unusual 2 family bungalow (so it stays on my blog post!)... BUT this one on Rogers Ave has some decided differences from the published drawing. The left side wall bumps out near the the back and the interior staircase is not enclosed.

How to tell a real pre-cut home.
Very basic ideas, search the web for more details by kit home authorities. It should match the catalog drawing and floor plan. The wood has letter and numbers stamped on it to show which pre-cut pieces fit with others. A mailing label may still be stuck to the wood. Distinctive fittings like door knobs, lamps, hinges, etc shown in their catalogs. Hunt around the house (ie attic) for blueprints, papers. It may be stated on the deed, particularly if the new owner used Sears for the mortage. Photo showing the numbers on a board from UMd site.

3497 Rogers Avenue. 1926

Image and floor plan/layout of the La Salle model -

Carlton Sykes House - Sear's La Salle model, two-family bungalow, built c1926 by Carlton & Mayanna Sykes and his son Guy Sykes. Guy and Grace built a house next door in the early 1930s. "The interior of the Carlton Sykes House remains remarkably intact. The floor plan is identical to that shown with the La Salle model in the 1926 Sears catalog with the exception that the published stair is cased within a separate entry hall. The Carlton Sykes House, on the other hand, has an open stair. ...The bathrooms, including tile floors and walls, and original porcelain fixtures remain unaltered, as does the 2nd floor kitchen with original sink, cabinet, and built-in ironing board. The house also retains some original light fixtures." [HABS]

Sears "Honor-Bilt" Homes
"The most expensive houses, including the La Salle model, were in the "Honor-Bilt" range. Honor-Bilt houses included pre-cut high-grade lumber and all the materials needed to complete the house, save the masonry foundation and interior plaster. The range of items integrated in the Sears house package included all the framing lumber, exterior sheathing, interior wood trim, built-in furnishings, plumbing fixtures, windows and doors, hardware, paint and stain, and even nailsand fasteners. The average number of pieces, not including nails and screws, was 30,000." [HABS]


SOURCES - HABS HO-853 Carlton Sykes House HERE; How to Identify Kit Homes. UMd library. HERE. Catalog page 1926 from Hagley Museum Library HERE;

MDLANDrec.net - Maryland land records online - Find your house history or family lands from home. Sears search for mortage, deed. How to successfully use MDLANDrecords, blog post HERE


THE FOLLOWING ONLINE RESOURCES - MAJOR CATALOG COMPANIES online catalogs, info, TAPED TALKS - HAS BEEN ENLARGED AND IS NOW HERE


CATALOGS ON LINE
For house designs, but also distinct fittings, door knobs, etc.

Sears Catalogs at Sears House Seekers (Sears & other companies) HERE
Sears Archives homes 1908-1940 HERE
Aladdin Homes 1906-1987. catalogs: 1908-1954 The Clarke HERE; 1914-1963. UPenn HERE
Gordon Van Tine Co. 1916-1931 Sears House Seekers HERE
Wardway Homes. Montgomery Ward’s. Internet Archives. 1917 HERE; 1924 HERE; 1930 HERE
Building Technology Heritage Library, by Association for Preservation on Internet Technology

MAJOR COMPANIES SELLING CATALOG HOMES

Aladdin Readi-Cut Houses, Aladdin Company - the first one!
Headquarters: Bay City MI
Years active: 1906-1987
Records archived: Clarke Historical Library, Central Mich U. "home of the Aladdin Company archives, with over 350 cubic feet of company records including plans and blueprints, product catalogs, individual sale receipts..."
Catalogs online: 1908-1954 The Clarke HERE; 1914-1963. UPenn HERE
Taped talks: Aladdin Kit Home Company. Bay City MI. Wendy and Andrew Mutch. Clarke Historical Library, Central Mich U.  1hr25min. Mar 2021 HERE; Mail Order Homes: Catalog and Kit Homes of Michigan. Andrew and Wendy Mutch. "Michigan was home to the Aladdin Company, the first and longest-lived manufacturer of kit houses" and two other companies Lewis and Sterling. Kalamazoo Public Library. Nov 2015 HERE

Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Headquarters: Chicago, IL
Years active: 1908-1942
Records archived: sales records destroyed; Sears website 'Archives homes' 1908-1940 HERE
Catalogs online: Sears House Seekers (Sears & other companies) HERE
Taped talks: Sears Kit Homes. Andrew and Wendy Mutch. Berkley Library Author Talks. 90min Dec 2014 HERE

Gordon Van Tine Co.
Headquarters: Davenport IO
Years active: 1910/2-1946
Records archived: Davenport Library. Special Collections.
Catalogs online: 1916-1931 Sears House Seekers HERE
Taped talks: Gordon Van Tine Co. Davenport Iowa 1910-1946. Katie Reinhardt. Davenport Library. Special Collections. sound varies, 35min. 2022. HERE

Montgomery Ward’s Wardway Homes.
Headquarters: Chicago IL
Years active: ?1915-1935
Records archived: ?
Catalogs online: 1915-1935 Sears House Seekers HERE
Taped talks: not yet


TAPED VIRTUAL TALKS

Aladdin Kit Home Company. Bay City MI. Wendy and Andrew Mutch. Clarke Historical Library, Central Mich U.  1hr25min. Mar 2021 HERE

Aladdin, Lewis, Sterling. Mail Order Homes: Catalog and Kit Homes of Michigan. Andrew and Wendy Mutch. "Michigan was home to the Aladdin Company, the first and longest-lived manufacturer of kit houses" and two other companies Lewis and Sterling. Kalamazoo Public Library. 60min Nov 2015 HERE

Gordon Van Tine Co. Davenport Iowa 1910-1946. Katie Reinhardt. Davenport Library. Special Collections. sound varies, 35min. 2022. HERE

Sears Kit Homes. Andrew and Wendy Mutch. Berkley Library Author Talks. 90min Dec 2014 HERE

Bungalow in a Box: Kit Houses of the Early Twentieth Century. Devin Colman, State Architectural Historian at the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation... a case study of Burlington, Vt. Historic New England. Nv 2021 40min HERE wonderful explanation of many architectural features, verification clues, VT is keeping an inventory.

One Week.  silent film.  Buster Keaton. 1920. "A newly wedded couple attempts to build a house with a prefabricated kit, unaware that a rival sabotaged the kit's component numbering." 25 min. HERE


©2023 Patricia Bixler Reber
Forgotten history of Ellicott City & Howard County MD