Almost five years ago, I wrote a blog on the Sears Ivanhoe in LaGrange, Illinois (discovered in a promotional flyer), and mentioned that it’d be fun to have a contemporary photo of the 1913-built house.
Some time later, William Frymark found the house in LaGrange and sent me three beautiful pictures of this grand old Sears kit house!
Too often, these 100-year-old Sears Homes end up getting torn down or falling down, so it was a special treat to see that this LaGrange house still alive and well, and in beautiful condition.
Thanks so much to William Frymark for finding this house and sending along the photos.
To read more about identifying Sears Homes, click here.
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The image above is from a brochure, promoting Sears building materials in general and roofing materials in particular. When I published that blog five years ago, I'd assumed Mr. Heeppes' home in LaGrange was brick. Turns out, it's all wood.
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"Slate surfaced shingles" look better than slate or tile? I'm not so sure about that, Mr. Heppes. Unfortunately, this brochure did not include images of the wallboard in the living room, dining room and one bedroom. He implies here that the wallboard was better than plaster. Hmmm...
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The Ivanhoe was a massive house and one of the larger houses offered by Sears (1920).
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That's a big house for its time, with more than 1,900 square feet of living area.
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Complete with a bedroom for the maid!
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Mr. Heppes' Ivanhoe in LaGrange, about 1913.
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Mr. Heppes' Ivanhoe 102 years later. Photo is copyright 2015 William Frymark and can not be used or reproduced without written permission. So there.
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A nice shot down the side of the 102-year-old home in LaGrange. Photo is copyright 2015 William Frymark and can not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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Mr. Heppes' beautiful old house apparently had an addition put on the rear. Photo is copyright 2015 William Frymark and can not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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Another faithful reader found this Ivanhoe in Monmouth, Illinois. It's also in wonderfully original condition. Photo is copyright 2011 Carol Parish and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.
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I discovered this beauty in Lewisburg, West Virginia.
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While visiting my daughter, I was surprised to find this Ivanhoe in a very ritzy neighborhood in Needham, Massachusetts (about 45 minutes from Boston).
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And yet, I'm still pining for one more picture of one more Ivanhoe. This house was featured in a testimonial and is in West Point, Virginia (not too far from me in Norfolk). It faces the Pamunkey River and we're looking at the backside (on West Euclid Boulevard). I've knocked on the door and sent them letters but no response. My kingdom for a tour of this beauty!
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Thanks again to William Frymark for the wonderful photos of the Sears Ivanhoe in LaGrange!
To read more about the Sears Homes of West Point, click here.
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Hi Rose. My Mom lives in West Point.
I’ve sent her a link to this article to see if she knows the owners of this home. Hope you’re doing well.
Keith,
That’d be great. It’s been several years since I went to West Point (and sent a letter). Maybe the house has new owners! 🙂
Thanks so much.
This was my grandparents house!! love the letter from my grandfather as he passed long before I was born.
Is it still standing? Can I get a copy of the pictures?
We are the current owners of the Sears Ivanhoe in Lagrange, Illinois.
We bought the house from Babe and Taylor in 2001. We had the addition put on and moved in on October 30, 2002.
I would love to send you photos or you are welcome to visit at any time.
I have a great story about Babe; She visits the house every so often!
@Jill Heppes Sadowski
Karin, Hello. My Aunt Babe and Uncle Tay lived the the house most of their lives together. They took care of Ethel Heppes, my Grandmother.
Glad to hear the house is still there.
I wanted to stop by a year ago to see for myself but it didn’t fit in with our plans. I live in Dallas Texas and we don,t get up that way often. I have some great memories in that house, the only house I saw my grandmother live in. Please send what you can
I grew up in Oscar Heppes Ivanhoe…1913
He was my Grandfather. I never met him.
He died before I was born.
My Mother was born in bedroom
over the dining room June 28,1914.
Oscars wife, Ethel, my grandmother,
kept that bedroom as her own as we grew.