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+-- Thread: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses (/showthread.php?tid=7326956)
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - Stwood_ - 01-15-2017
A town north of us has several that are all on one street, side by side.
Several have had the metal panels replaced over the years
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - Arlin Eastman - 01-15-2017
I found the same one as MikeBob but another one when I Googled as well
https://www.google.com/search?q=sears+house+floor+plan&safe=active&biw=1067&bih=501&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiG0anU28TRAhVE6WMKHTXUBkMQsAQINQ
From the link above it even shows the prices of some of the homes from $500 to $1200 and a lot of them look like Tudor houses
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - EricU - 01-15-2017
there was one here in town that was listed for $1/2 mil. They had upgraded and added on, nice looking house. But the fact that it was a sears house that was originally bought for $10k in today's money sorta made that seem a little high
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - wood2woodknot - 01-15-2017
I did find the SEARS ARCHIVE website which lists many of the house models along with catalogs that contain the basic floor plans. Also some history behind the homes offered between 1910 to 1942. Interesting website. Any model could be rearranged before ordering and received with all the parts needed (nails, plumbing, electric, and things like HVAC could be added to the basic order for additional $$$). Was designed so that only one carpenter was needed to construct the home.
Still looking for more detailed plans/blueprints.
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - Lynden - 01-15-2017
I grew up in the small town of Gilbert, Iowa, in a Sears foursquare, the Gladstone.
http://www.antiquehome.org/House-Plans/1935-Sears/Gladstone.htm
The floor plan was the 3315-B layout shown in the link above. Our house had the optional full-width addition on the back -- a den connected to the dining room, an enclosed porch connected to the kitchen and a sun room on the second floor. Instead of the hipped roofs shown in the picture, our house had gable-end roofs on both the house and porch.
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - mr_skittle - 01-15-2017
Sweet thread! After a little perusing I found the house I grew up in. Modern home #167. It's still in great shape with a couple of additions over the years. That's saying something since it's seen nearly 100 years of brutal ND weather.
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - petertay15 - 01-15-2017
My son lives in a Sears house, so we gave him a reproduction catalogue which shows his Craftsman style, wood shingle home.. They sold complete pre-cut kits in several dozen styles. Their 1920s house catalog included this astonishing claim: If you find a knot in any board, we'll send you a dollar for each knot you find." They weren't just referring to trim boards, but to the studs and rafters! That would be $12 today.
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - wood2woodknot - 01-15-2017
Petertay15: "Their 1920s house catalog included this astonishing claim: If you find a knot in any board, we'll send you a dollar for each knot you find." They weren't just referring to trim boards, but to the studs and rafters! That would be $12 today."
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Now THAT is really interesting.
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - CanoeBoy - 01-15-2017
Not sure if this is true or not, but Dad would comment about the "Sears neighborhood". It was a neighborhood located not far from the General Motors Plant in my home town, and Dad joked about the Sears houses that were built for workers during WW2. I always thought he was pulling my leg when he said, "They have everything including the house".
RE: crazy question - has anyone ever seen plans for the Sears houses - joespehar - 01-15-2017
I have a friend here in Massachusetts who lives in one. It's a two story, built maybe 90 or more years ago, shipped here by train. It has some really fine woodwork that hardly anybody would be able to afford these days.