“The Chesterfield home has an English ancestry which has stood the test of public favor for many centuries…”
The Sears Chesterfield was indeed a nobby tudoresque design, but apparently it didn’t catch on. And it was offered only in the 1926 Sears Modern Homes catalog. I’ve never seen one “in the flesh.”
However, thanks to the indefatigable efforts of Andrew Mutch, Wendy Mutch and Melodie Nichols, we now have pictures of a beautiful Chesterfield in Clawson, Michigan.
For those visiting this page for the first time, you might be wondering, what is a Sears Home? These were 12,000-piece kits that were ordered right out of the pages of the Sears Roebuck catalog. The homes were offered from 1908 – 1940, and during their 32-years in the kit home business, 370 models were offered.
Sears promised that a “man of average abilities” could have the house built and ready for occupancy in 90 days. That could have been a little ambitious. Typically, it took novice homebuilders six months or more to finish these homes.
To learn more about this fascinating topic, click here.
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In a pinch, you could offer this page to someone as an eye test, and see if they notice that the font gets smaller and smaller near the bottom. On a side note, I have no idea what an "informal massing of the walls" means (near the center of the text). Then again, I have never seen a "formal massing" of walls. Is it like an informal gathering? Are the walls just hanging out together, having one big quiet party? If you were a quiet wall and you didn't participate in these informal gatherings, would you be a wall flower? Or would you just be a wall wall? One has to wonder. (From 1926 catalog.)
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Pricey little dog, given the fact that this was 1926.
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I don't see any informal massing of the walls here. However, I bet that breakfast room was a chilly place on a balmy Michigan winter morning.
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I wonder if the "informal masses" are hiding in the spacious closets?
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Chesterfield, as seen in the 1926 catalog.
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What a beauty! It's been altered a bit but the original lines are still there. And the third floor of this house must be quite spacious. This house is in Clawson, Michigan which (thanks to Andrew, Wendy and Melodie) has been found to be a real hotbed of kit homes! Photo is copyright 2012 Melodie Nichols and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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A side view of the Chesterfield. Look at that enormous chimney. Photo is copyright 2012 Melodie Nichols and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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Oh my stars, now we KNOW it's a Sears Home! It has an "S" on the chimney!! Ah, not really. This is one CRAZY myth that is still bouncing around on the internet. That "S" on the chimney is a stylistic feature that has nothing to do with whether or not it's a Sears House. In this case, that "S" is part of the brace that helps keep that oversized chimney stable. Photo is copyright 2012 Andrew and Wendy Mutch and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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Nice shooting, Melodie! She did a perfect job of photographing the house from the same angle as the original catalog picture.
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To read the next blog (also about kit homes in Michigan), click here.
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” On a side note, I have no idea what an “informal massing of the walls” means
It refers to the asymmetrical front, with the overlapping shapes of the vestibule and other walls.
If they were symmetrical, you would have “formal massing”.
Thank you SO much!! Thanks for taking the time to post such a thoughtful response!
So it really does *mean* something! :()
I’m so glad to know that!
OMG! I have driven by that house for 20 years and did not know it was a Sears House. Rose and I went through Clawson when she was visiting the Detroit area some years ago.
@Dale Wolicki
Hi Dale!
So I missed it, too! 🙂 I’m not surprised. I love my little Sears Homes but sometimes I drive right past them in broad daylight and never hear them call my name!!