This really is a Sears House.
Can you guess which model it is?
I would never have guessed. Ever.
However, I was given a good clue.
So what do you think?
It’s in Shorewood, Wisconsin, and this photo was taken by Elisabeth Witt, who’s been running around getting photos for me. And they’re well-framed, first-class, high-resolution photos, which makes a big difference – usually.
But with this particular house, even an old pro would be stumped.
Thanks to Elisabeth Witt for the contemporary photos shown below.
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Yes, it really is a Sears House. Which model would you guess?
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Does this help?
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Maybe seeing it from this angle will help.
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Do you give up? You should. It's a Sears Hamilton.
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When Google mapped this neighborhood in September 2014, the house above looked like this.
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Which looks a lot like this (1928 catalog).
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Here's a Hamilton that Dale Wolicki found in Kankakee, Illinois. Photo is copyright 2009 Dale Wolicki and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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This photo (undated) is from the Shorewood assessor's website.
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And if you zoom in on the details, you'll see that this darling little house had its original windows, rafter tails, and even wooden storm windows. It was a fine-looking Hamilton.
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And then it got McMansioned.
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That trailer probably contains the dismembered bits of our little Hamilton.
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At first I thought Elisabeth had photographed the wrong house. After all, I wasn't 100% sure about the address. But in this photo, you can see that our Hamilton sits next door to a blue craftsman-style bungalow.
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And then I noticed this. It's definitely the house formerly known as "Hamilton."
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Rest in peace, little Hamilton.
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Believe it or not my little Wisconsin Hammie, it could have been worse. At least you were spared the T-111 siding (Elgin IL). Perhaps this blog should be titled, "When Bad Things Happen to Good Bungalows."
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To learn more about Sears Homes, click here.
To read a happy, happy blog, click here.
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I’m sorry, but that is FUGLY! It now looks like a big box. 🙁
Sacrilege!
Damn Architects!
I just love how they were able to incorporate the old porch support and sidewalk into the new design.
That is some truly talented design experts at work there.
It’s not a Hamilton any more. Now it’s officially a McTravesty.
You can bet too that the interior doesn’t look any more like its original arrangement than the exterior resembles its original elevation, or lack of same.
It’s for sale! http://www.shorewest.com/homes/1429696_METRO-3819_N_Frederick_Ave-Shorewood-WI-53211-2550#.VZAPjUbQok8
I went to a family reunion and found my grandparents home that my grandfather built.
They said it was a Sears home and sure enough I found the floor plan on your site…The Crescent! The windows have been changed to bays, which I think is charming, but the owners have taken beautiful care of it. Thank you for posting all this information!