In 2008, I visited Colonial Heights (just outside of Richmond) and did a survey of their kit homes. A short time later, I did a talk and booksigning. I was quite surprised to find so many kit homes in Colonial Heights. In nearby Petersburg, I found only three kit homes in the whole city! In Colonial Heights, I found more than three dozen.

During my 2008 visit, there was one house in particular that I studied and stared at, but could not identify it. When I returned to Colonial Heights on March 2011, I was able to identify it almost immediately.

This sweet little yellow house was an Aladdin Willard.

Aladdin Everett as seen in the 1919 Aladdin catalog

Aladdin Willard in Colonial Heights.

To learn more about kit homes, click here.

To buy Rose’s book, click here.

To read about the Sears Homes in nearby Hopewell, click here.

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