In Fall 2002, I was broke, depressed, lonely and very worried about the future. Months earlier, my beloved mother had died unexpectedly and my marriage of 24 years had ended in divorce.
Those were tough times.
I had one thing going for me: My newly published book, The Houses That Sears Built.
Working 100-hour weeks, I did nothing but promote that book and send out free copies to local media outlets. I slept and I worked. There wasn’t time or money for anything else.
If the book didn’t start selling fast, I’d have to do something I dreaded: Get a real job, and jobs in Alton, Illinois were tough to find.
Sometime in late 2002, I drove around Ferguson, Missouri and found a few Sears Homes. I’m sorry to say I’ve forgotten how it unfolded from there, but I hooked up with a local architect and history lover named Alan. He put me in touch with a couple folks from the city of Ferguson. In time, I was hired to do a survey of the kit homes in the city of Ferguson.
Alan drove me around to the different neighborhoods and it was great fun. Most of what I knew about architecture came from reading books. Alan graciously answered my many simple questions about architecture. I will always remember his kindness and patience.
After I’d identified a few kit homes, the city had a lovely ceremony, and each Sears Home owner was presented with a beautiful plaque. I was invited to be part of the presentation ceremony.
It was a lovely memory for so many different reasons.
First and foremost, the folks in Ferguson – homeowners, Alan the Architect, city officials and employees – showed me so much kindness and respect.
Secondly, this was my rubicon.
My divorce had been heart-breaking, but this experience in Ferguson showed me that my work had value and my life had purpose, and that there were people in the world who shared my passion for these old houses.
Some time later, the kit homes in Ferguson were featured on “Show Me St. Louis” (a popular TV show), and that also warmed the cockles of my heart, and gave me new hope that I could make a career out of this vocation.
In subsequent years, my book and I have been featured on PBS History Detectives, CBS Sunday Morning News, A&E’s Biography, MSNBC, NPR, BBC Radio, and many more. I’ve traveled to 25 states doing surveys and giving talks.
But it all started with the grace and kindess of the many fine folks in Ferguson.
That‘s why I love Ferguson so much.
BTW, if you know the addresses of these homes or even street names, please send me a note or leave a comment. When I did this survey, I didn’t know much about the other kit home companies. I’d love to come back and do a more thorough survey.
Lastly, these images are from 12-year-old slides. The colors are off and the images are grainy.
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One of the reasons there are so many kit homes in the St. Louis area is because there was a Sears Modern Homes sales center in St. Louis. There were only 40 of these in the country.
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Sears only placed these "Sales Centers" in communities where sales were strong.
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Sears Walton as seen in the 1928 catalog.
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I remember the homeowner here was just THRILLED to learn she had a Sears House!
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The Lebanon was a popular house for Sears (1921 catalog).
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Lovely Lebanon in Ferguson. Notice the placement of the door next to the one window.
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Sears Marina (1916)
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A perfect Marina in Ferguson.
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The Sears Lexington was one of their biggest and most expensive homes.
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Initially, I'd missed this stately Lexington hiding behind the hedge, but this IS a Lexington!
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Nice comparison of the Lexington entryway. Although it's somewhat obscured, you can see the fan light in the 1928 image. The details on the porch are spot on!
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Sears Barrington (1928).
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Although I initially identified this as a Barrington, I'm starting to wonder if it is a pattern book house. These many years later, I do not remember if we went inside this house.
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In addition to Sears Homes, I also found a Gordon Van Tine home in Ferguson.
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Very distinctive house!
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The porch has been enclosed, but this is a lovely GVT #605 in Ferguson.
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I have spent many years trying to identify this house. I've yet to find it in any pattern books, kit house catalogs or magazines. But hey - it's only been 12 years. I'm still looking!
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To read about the kit homes I found in Kirkwood, click here.
To learn more about how to identify kit homes, click here.
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The Lexington one you have shown looks like one on Elizabeth.
Jennifer, I think that’s right. I think it IS on Elizabeth.
Rose,
Here are the addresses of the homes you identified on your first visit to Ferguson.
401 Estelle Lebanon
237 Louisa Walton
219 Roberta Marina
933 Elizabeth Lexington
131 N Harvey model 135
I was Mayor at the time and was delighted with your help identifying our Sears Homes.
Not in Ferguson, by neighboring Florrisant, on a section of Washington, there is almost a block of Sears homes, and they’re all 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, about 950 square feet. My aunt lived in one for years.