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Way back when, Sears sold kit homes through its catalogs.  They were delivered by mail-order freight, either all at once or over time as you built each part, etc.  I've always been intrigued by them and have reproductions of several catalogs and have taken a tour of eight homes here in central NC that were Sears mail order kit homes.  

 

Has anyone ever seen a (1:48 model) kit for a house identifiable as a Sears home, or scratch-built a model of one?  The  house kits were usually delivered by box car.  I have this idea for a very neat vignette with a house under construction and a boxcar pulled nearby with figures unloading this month's.  Not sure where I would put it, but it would be so cool!

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sears_Catalog_Home

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Bachmann did two 'Sears' homes in plastic HO scale kits. As far as any in O scale....none ever advertised as a 'Sears' house. 

My layout will be populated by 'company house' types.

But if I find a need for a nicer home I my scale up the Alpine Division HO scale 'doctors house' which is very Sears like.

Photo from Alpine Div Models

 

DRHOUSE

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     Lee I grew up in A house from Sears and the house next to and behind us were also from Sears. I had started O gauge house out of balsa wood of our house the roof was the only thing that was not finished. We were moving from Turtle Creek to Monroeville and my nephew stoped by to see if I needed help. I told him no that the load I had was it for the night. He saw the model house I built sitting on the roof of the truck and asked if he could take it out because he was going to visit gram and pap for A while. I told him OK but to be careful with it (famous last words). I was unloading stuff at the new house when he puled up. He told me he had stoped to get some smokes at the 8-12 and A friend of his jumped in the passenger seat to talk with him. Well that is where the model house was sitting (SMASH). The kid jumped back out and ran off so my nephew is handing me A bunch of fire starter wood that used to be the model house. I have not built anything from scratch since then. Choo Choo Kenny 

Lee, if you're interested in Sears homes, I recommend "Houses by Mail" by K.V. Stevenson and H.W. Jandl.  Illustrations and floor plans on every one of the more than 300 pages. (It's published by the National Trust for Historic Preservation).

Amazon has it new for $25.84 and used (good condition) for $10.35.  I've used it to identify several Sears homes in my small Midwestern town.

   Sears was not the only firm that offered kit built houses...and they were available nationwide from a firm called Jim Walters Homes until they quit in 2009.  Others may still do so.  

Last edited by Logan Matthews

In December, 1984 and January, 1985, Railroad Model Craftsman published a 2 part, very detailed article on building a "four square" Sears home, with lots of plans, pictures, etc.  Grandtline even produced (in HO and O) some of the specialized windows needed for an accurate model and they are still available.

   Bachman also offered a plastic ready-built HO model of it.  It may still be available. 

  

Last edited by Logan Matthews
Originally Posted by Logan Matthews:

Lee, if you're interested in Sears homes, I recommend "Houses by Mail" by K.V. Stevenson and H.W. Jandl.  Illustrations and floor plans on every one of the more than 300 pages. (It's published by the National Trust for Historic Preservation).

Amazon has it new for $25.84 and used (good condition) for $10.35.  I've used it to identify several Sears homes in my small Midwestern town.

   Sears was not the only firm that offered kit built houses...and they were available nationwide from a firm called Jim Walters Homes until they quit in 2009.  Others may still do so.  

Thanks everyone.  Logan, I ordered that book and the Houses that Sears Built, by Rosemary Thorton, which looked more story/text than plans, etc., and had stellar reviews.  I'm going to pick up and make tha vignette.  Too neat not to.

Good timing

I have been looking around Merced, Ca. to locate one of these houses I could measure, draw to scale and eventually produce a line of kits.

I stopped at one place last summer. They seemed enthusiastic, but never called me as promised.

Going on other peoples' property these days taking pictures and drawings can get a little dicey. 

I put a post up here if I'm ever successful.

Two years after getting married we scraped together a down payment and bought a 39 year old Sears cape cod that the original owner had constructed by a local builder. It was a very simple home, a classic cape cod design with a door and a window on each side in the front.

 

It was 1200 square feet and a porch and dormer (extra bedroom) had been added upstairs. It was a very solid house and served us well for 8 years until a growing family made moving to a larger home (1,600 sq. ft.!) a necessity.

 

There were many happy memories there and it was in that home that I dug out my old trains and got back into the hobby.

 

 

Ironic, too, isn't it, guys?  Sears was a big part of my childhood.  It and J C Pennies were the "big" stores we went to when Western Auto, Woolworths, and Kresses, etc., or the independent shops downtown, didn't have what we wanted.  I must have owned four of five Craftsman lawnmowers, and still have hundreds of their tools, and gobs of their appliances, over the years.  

But now, Sears is in so much financial trouble.  ((( I promise not to start in about what I think of analytical financial wonks who take over companies and try to solve their problems with "financial engineering" solutions, but the results sort of speqk for themselves, don't they! ).  The Sears nearest me - only one within miles and miles - is closing and having super sales over these holidays.  I guess it says something about their situation that I have not even stopped in to see.    

 

There is an amazing similarity to the story or "the rise and fall" of Sears and Amazon: Amazon is the Sears of the 21st century, and in large measure responsible for creating the situation that Sears - and Barnes and Noble, and others - can't deal with effectively.  

But I just checked this morning to make sure: you still can't buy houses on Amazon.

But you can buy Mopeds and motor scooters (my wife's younger brother had one way back when, a Vespa of sorts).  I was surprised.  Probably only a matter of time until Amazon sells houses, too.

 

 

Last edited by Lee Willis
Originally Posted by Joe Hohmann:
Originally Posted by Lee Willis:

  Probably only a matter of time until Amazon sells houses, too.

 

 

I even bought three food items from Amazon that I could not find in our local stores.

Yeah, we buy a low-sugar Lemonade my wife likes that the local groceries stopped carrying, and some rice that is hard to get from them.  I figure in a few years I can get rid of the car 'cause I won't ever need to go shopping - just order it from Amazon!

To Lee and all,

 

I found this neat Honor Built home manual from 1930

even includes the railroad shipping page ( page 4).

 

How To Build Your Ready Cut Honor Built Home

 

https://archive.org/details/HonorBiltBuildingMaterials

 

Lot's information here for the scratch builder. I am

not at that level yet. But if some of the other readers

produce kits I would be interested. Maybe a topic for

Woodland Scenics?

 

I was searching for exterior measurements, specifically 

foundation heights when I came across this document.

 

Tom

Last edited by Tom Q Fan

Well, unfortunately I am not aware of any current O scale kits of these catalog homes.

 

HOWEVER!!!!....

 

Branchline (Laser-Art Structures) makes a whole listing of 'catalog' homes as HO kits...

 

Laser-Art Catalog Homes Link

 

As I and others have often suggested in situations such as this, a corresponding HO kit offers a lot of guidance/plans/patterns from which a 2X multiplier works wonders!  Once you have obtained all you want from the kit, sell it to your HO modeling buddy.

  Or, better yet, talk him/her into buying the kit and for a few dozen homemade chocolate chip cookies....or magnum of vino or 24-pack of suds...ask to borrow the kit before he/she constructs, make your measurements, 2X copies of plans, etc., and then return the kit intact.

 

Of course, Branchline is not the only producer of HO catalog home kits/structures, as others have noted.  But the same idea could apply.

 

Well, y knot? 

 

I mean, the HO side of this hobby has to be useful to us for something, I should think!!

 

KD

Last edited by dkdkrd
Originally Posted by Joe Hohmann:
Originally Posted by Lee Willis:

  Probably only a matter of time until Amazon sells houses, too.

 

 

I even bought three food items from Amazon that I could not find in our local stores.

When we moved we couldn't find some favorite food (and other) items locally.  Within a couple of weeks we got HP brown sauce, King Kelly orange marmalade, Camay bath soap, etc all from Amazon.

Originally Posted by Lee Willis:
Originally Posted by Joe Hohmann:
Originally Posted by Lee Willis:

  Probably only a matter of time until Amazon sells houses, too.

 

 

I even bought three food items from Amazon that I could not find in our local stores.

Yeah, we buy a low-sugar Lemonade my wife likes that the local groceries stopped carrying, and some rice that is hard to get from them.  I figure in a few years I can get rid of the car 'cause I won't ever need to go shopping - just order it from Amazon!

If you get rid of the car how will you get to the gas station to buy...........OH!

 

Never mind.

Originally Posted by Forty Rod:
Originally Posted by Lee Willis:
Originally Posted by Joe Hohmann:
Originally Posted by Lee Willis:

  Probably only a matter of time until Amazon sells houses, too.

 

 

I even bought three food items from Amazon that I could not find in our local stores.

Yeah, we buy a low-sugar Lemonade my wife likes that the local groceries stopped carrying, and some rice that is hard to get from them.  I figure in a few years I can get rid of the car 'cause I won't ever need to go shopping - just order it from Amazon!

If you get rid of the car how will you get to the gas station to buy...........OH!

 

Never mind.

If I need any for the lawnmower, no doubt Amazon will deliver it!

 

Thanks for the link Alan Rogers.

 

I am heartened by the interest in this.  I think the Sears houses - and the other kit houses of the period, too, but mainly Sears because a mass-retailer selling them is just so cool.  I really wish someone would do a series of kits of four of five - I'd buy them all, but I am going to make one or two from scratch.  

Originally Posted by Logan Matthews:

Lee, if you're interested in Sears homes, I recommend "Houses by Mail" by K.V. Stevenson and H.W. Jandl.  Illustrations and floor plans on every one of the more than 300 pages. (It's published by the National Trust for Historic Preservation).

Amazon has it new for $25.84 and used (good condition) for $10.35.  I've used it to identify several Sears homes in my small Midwestern town.

   Sears was not the only firm that offered kit built houses...and they were available nationwide from a firm called Jim Walters Homes until they quit in 2009.  Others may still do so.  

It arrived yesterday, along with the other book I ordered The Houses That Sears Built by Rosemary Thorton.  if I had to have only one, I'd want Houses By Mail, but the second book is quite different and I am glad I have it - more personal with lots of long detailed stories from people who built their homes, etc.  

 

DSCN0847

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I currently live in the first floor apartment of a converted two family house.  Arter talking with my landlord, we suspect it may be a kit home by one of the other companies.  I've gotten pretty close researching floorplans, but I've heard you can also tell by the hardware on original windows and the ones in this house are pretty darn unique!  Maybe i'll pick up that book that's been mentioned.  either way, it's a cool concept.  Maybe i'll make as scene as suggested with a boxcar and a house under construction.  Anybody make a Sears & Roebuck boxcar?  I'll take a wild guess and say that sears didn't have dedicated boxcars, but it would help explain the scene a little better.  On a similar note, did anybody watch Boardwalk Empire?  Van Alden built his house from a kit; forget if they mentioned Sears or not...

Yes, I was wondering about the house Van laden made in Broadwalk Empire, and if it was a Sears kit.  I don't remember from the show if they mentioned. 

 

I googled this and channelguidemagblog says in its narrtive it is a Sears kit house, but I don't know if they just assumed that of the show said for sure.  

 

 

http://www.channelguidemagblog...-9-marriage-hunting/

 

What is cooler, from the books: Sears cold apartment building kits, a kit for a six-classroom school with auditorium, etc., and modular hospital kits, too.

Last edited by Lee Willis

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