Apparently, Ypsilanti and nearby Pittsfield Township are “hot spots” for finding kit homes!
Kit House Aficionados Andrew and Wendy Mutch have been supplying me with a plethora of first-class photos of kit homes from Sears, Wardway, Gordon Van Tine, Aladdin and more. I’m so very grateful to them.
They’ve obviously got a keen eye for detail and heretofore, every house they’ve identified has been identified correctly and that is quite a feat (and a rarity!).
And now they’ve moved beyond Sears Homes and into kit homes from Wardway, Gordon Van Tine and Aladdin.
Below you’ll find pictures of the Wardway Dresden. Is it a Wardway house or a Gordon Van Tine house? Unfortunately, it’s impossible to know from exterior appearances alone. Orders for Wardway Homes were fulfilled by Gordon Van Tine (Davenport, Iowa).
The only way to know if it’s a Wardway Home is to inspect millwork and/or shipping labels and/or (sometimes) framing members. A Wardway House will be marked “Montgomery Ward,” and a GVT house will be marked, “G.V.T.” (No kidding.)
Thanks so much to Andrew and Wendy for supplying all the wonderful photos!
Want to learn more about Wardway? Click here.
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Wardway Homes were actually manufactured by another kit home company, Gordon Van Tine (based in Davenport, Iowa). Unlike Sears, Montgomery Ward did NOT have an entire division devoted to selling kit homes.
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The Wardway Dresden was featured in the front pages of the 1927 Wardway catalog.
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It was categorized as "An unusually nice bungalow" (1927 catalog).
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Some details on this "unusually fine bungalow."
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Several Wardway/GVT houses had these offset front porches, which makes identification so much easier. When I created my own field guide (from hundreds of old catalog pages), I created a section dedicated to houses with these offset porches. It was - in my mind - a very distinctive feature.
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The Dresden - in all its shining splendor!
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Thanks to Andrew and Wendy Mutch, I have an unusually fine photo of this unusually fine bungalow. The house is located in Pittsfield Township (Michigan). Photo is copyright 2013 Andrew and Wendy Mutch and may not be used or reproduced without written permission. An aside: If only Andrew or Wendy kept a chain saw in the glove compartment (as I recommend), they could have easily remedied the pesky problem of this small tree blocking their view.
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Another fine photo of this fine bungalow. Photo is copyright 2013 Andrew and Wendy Mutch and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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And it still has its original siding and railings! Be still my heart! Photo is copyright 2013 Andrew and Wendy Mutch and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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To learn more about Wardway Homes, click here.
To learn how to identify kit homes, click here.
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