Some of you regulars probably remember Rose Thorton, who has been on this board off and on over the past few years. I have exchanged emails with her a few times, and didn’t live all that far apart, but we had never met. Finally got to meet her last night.
The local Historical Society had a dinner and Rose was the guest speaker. She talked a lot about the history of Sears, the Sears homes, and when and where they were built.
Have you seen those commercials where a woman is washing her hair with some brand of shampoo? The ones where the woman moans and screams like she’s about to have an orgasm? That’s how Rose sounded when she saw one of the slides of a Sears home that was in good condition. And she had a few choice words for the ones that were in poor condition.
Some of you might be amused to hear that she’s the sworn enemy of aluminum and vinyl siding. She referred to me as satan when I told her that I liked the stuff………………..(-:
Her book on sears homes is availabe at Amazon.com:
The book has apparently sold out 2 printings, and is getting ready to go into a 3rd.
Rose mentioned that items related to sears homes are going for big bucks on ebay. So if you have any old catalogs, flyers, or blueprints from the homes they might be worth something. She also mentioned that in some parts of the country, the homes themselves are collectables – I think she mentioned one sale for $400,000 and another for $800,000. (Going from memory there)
Rose also said she was single, and may start hanging around here again to see if there were any available bachelors who might own sears homes. You’ll have to ask her which models are the most attractive to her.
I plan to invite her to HogFest, since she lives close by. Is anybody that’s coming single ???
Grammar has gots to be one of the most importantest things ever
Replies
How old is the gal and u got a pic? ;O)
She's 42. Never thought to take the camera along. Gotta get me one of them digital things one of these days.
Did a brief search of the internet, but did not come up with a pic - Thought she might have one along with her book info somewhere.
I did run across an artile she wrote about finding antique house stuff on ebay:
http://www.oldhousechronicle.com/archives/vol02/issue12/living/salvage.htmlEntropy just isn't what it used to be
I looked at the review on Amazon. 9 reader reviews and all of them where 5 stars. That is unusual, typically there will be at least one person that will rate a book only 2 or 3 stars just because they go up on the wrong side of the bed.
Oh I guess a cancel due on that is in order. 400 to 800 k's too many zeros for my blood.
Livin' poor is sometimes livin' free,
Once in a while.
What's the info on hog fest? dates-locations-etc.
remodeler
It's Memorial Day Weekend (May 24th - 26th) in central Illinois.
Here's the official HogFest thread. It has pics, and more specific location info.I keep telling myself that I am a pathological liar, but I am not sure if I believe it
>
>It's Memorial Day Weekend (May 24th - 26th) in central Illinois
um, baby boy due june 4th. I'll ask the wife if I can go...
remodeler
I looked at the link on Amazon. No info there regarding this, but were some of the Sears homes the ones that had the porcelain panels on the exterior in lieu of aluminum siding? The panels are about 2 foot square. There is one of those structures in Milwaukee I saw a bit ago and wonder if it is still standing. The exterior sure didn't rust. Funny construction technique.
What is the R value of steel? I'm thinking .38. Emphasis on the "." Cute house though.
regarding steel panel construction...
there are a few steel houses in Ann Arbor, MI, clustered together in one of those post war boom neighborhoods.
One of the residents said that when they recently moved in to one and had a housewarming party many people brought refridgerator magnets!
Norm
Cute idea.Jack of all trades and master of none - you got a problem with that?
I know the neighborhood ulgy homes if you ask me.
Sears sold several styles of bungalows and other small homes. They were quite nice. Those houses posted are not the examples you will see in the book. Well, maybe in the section on ruined homes....that's not a mistake, it's rustic
What an interesting thread! ;)
I've been out of town and I missed a lot, I see. Lustron sold those homes with the 2x2 20-gage steel panels. THe houses were all steel - inside and out - and you use MAGNETS to hang items on the interior walls. Thomas Fedders wrote a book about Lustron Homes which is for sale at Amazon.com.
Now about the important stuff, I'm tall, luxuriant black locks and h/w/p as the ads say. I'm a serious cyclist and love the outdoors. Pic available upon request. :)
Or you can tune into PBS this June. I was just in Ohio and taped a segment on Sears Homes for the new series "History Detectives". Woo-hoo!
Rose Thornton
Or you can tune into PBS this June. I was just in Ohio and taped a segment on Sears Homes for the new series "History Detectives". Woo-hoo!
Cool! Where abouts?
And, any opinion about the pics I posted of 2 reputed sears houses across the street from me? msg 28189.9 (more angles available on request.
h/w/p? Healthy/wealthy/personable? Heroic/wise/perishable?
_______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
Edited 3/9/2003 6:42:42 PM ET by Bob Walker
Hello Rose,
I used to live in Aurora Ill. where I knew of two Lustron homes in the West side . They are quite easy to pick out of the surrounding homes .
I didn't know there were sears homes in my area until I happened to be watching a Cary Grant movie.
I don't know the title but he plays a navy man who in a scene is going thru the personal effects of a pilot that was lost.
He was tasked with writing the letter to the family and he came across a advertisement of a sears home .
The camera showed a close up of it and would you believe that the house it showed was the house right across the street from me.
Later I happened to talk to the couple who owned it and yes it is a sears kit house.
Really cute homes. Whoever designed them did a wonderful job.
Hi Rose
I know of a few Lustron homes here in Ohio. I live near Dayton, and always assumed they were made from Armco Steel (now AK Steel) located in Middletown. I still don't know where they were made. There was one that burned down in Centerville. I don't know how that happened, but the damage was severe enough to raze the house.
My own house is interesting. It is a prefab home put up in 1945 as off base officers housing. There is a sizeable neighborhood of these homes here. What is interesting is that they are pretty much identical to Levittown homes, but predate them. I always heard that Levittown is the first prefabricated home subdivision. The walls are constructed of 1/4" plywood that is seamed between the studs with a splice and some kind of bright pink glue that is incredibly strong. The plywood says Weyerhauser wall-board on the back. All the joists are stamped with a location. The walls have 6" hardened spikes nailing the corners together, with small diameter shanks and very small heads. I hit some of these while replacing some sections of "wall-board" with my reciprocating saw and saw some sparks, then there were no teeth left on the blade. These were milwaukee bi-metal blades, so those were the toughest nails I have ever seen.
By the way, the Little Miami Scenic Trail here is great for biking! It's a converted RR right of way that is fantastic! I'd be happy to take you for a ride (on the trail) if you're in the area.
Mark (44YO SWHM)
If I remember correctly Lustom home where made in Columbus. A couple of those link that I posted earlier in the threads give the history.
Glad ya made it back safe and sound. Be sure to let us know when the special will be on PBS.
Have you been through Piasa on route 16? I was through there Friday, and I'm fairly sure there's a sears house on the north side of the road there. Since your talk, I keep noticing them. Must be contagious, huh ?
Dad never has let me borrow his copy of your book........................(-:Reality is the leading cause of stress among those in touch with it.
Did you see the pic Bob Walker posted called "tilesiding.jpg"? IF that's what you're talking about, Rose mentioned this type of home in her talk. I believe she said these were NOT something sears sold.
I emailed her and told her I had started this thread. She was on her way somewhere, but will hopefully drop back by this thread when she gets back. Maybe she will have time to give some more info.I used to be an inventor. Who do you think came up with the inflatable voodoo doll?
I think that you are thinking of Lustron Homes. Sears did not have anything to do with them. It was a post WWII plan to convert some of the war plants to make housing.
Here is an article about ones in Milwaukee.
http://www.jsonline.com/homes/buy/oct02/85008.asp
And here is a big reference about Lustron.
http://members.tripod.com/Strandlund/index-1.html
When I was in grad school one of the proffesors had modular steel home. But it did not have the procelain coating. And I think that it was a later period. Mid to late 50's.
I didn't know they existed until I first moved to town and had a fender bender (on their car) with an occupant of one of the homes. I passed along a check and got an education on the construction.Jack of all trades and master of none - you got a problem with that?
Definitly looks like a Lustron. It just sold and presumably will change hands soon. I'm going to contact the agent and see if I can get in to get some photos during the change over._______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
Rose also said she was single, and may start hanging around here again to see if there were any available bachelors who might own sears homes. You'll have to ask her which models are the most attractive to her.
Firsdt - does she look like the lady in those ads or just sound like it {G}
Second - I believe I've got two across the street from me, photo attached.
Third, - will you ask her if the "TileSiding" house pictured here is also a Sears house - the one pictured, with the 2' x 2' ceramic(?) tile siding just sold near me.
_______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
>'scratching chin' Let's see...I can get those for 65...then 400 to 800...honey, where's the calculator?
Bob,
I was told the porcelain on steel tile homes were built after WWII by a company that built housing or something for the war. With the demand for housing it was a natural fit. There are a bunch in my neighborhood (NW suburbs of Chicago). Most have been sided w/ vinyl but they looked exactly like your picture. There are also a bunch of Sears homes around here. I find them intriguing.
J.
Bob -
The ones you called "searshomes.jpg" look to me like sears homes. The overhang details and the little window in the front gable are things I've seen before on them. But keep in mind that I'm no expert on them - I've seen a lot of them, and heard Rose talk about them - That's it.
See my replay to Booch on the other one.
Don't know if/when I might see Rose again. As I said to Booch, hopefully she'll stop back in and check on this thread, then provide some input.
And no, she doesn't LOOK like the shampoo commercial lady - Her mannerisms just made me think of those commercials.I know I'm narrow minded. But I can afford to be - I'm right.
That 2nd one look just the Lustron homes pictures. They where made in Columbus. Ck out the links that I posted to Booch or do a google on Lustron.
Those two little brown houses in the pictures are "The Fairy" which was a popular (and small) Sears Home. The first time I spotted one, I ran in the back door of my home yelling, "I just saw my first Fairy!" The family thought I was insane.
http://www.searsmodernhomes.com/graphics/1921-1926/1925_3217.jpg
The other house is a Lustron (with the tiles and the metal roof). Lustrons are awesome.
I don't own a TV, so I haven't seen the ad that Ron spoke of --- the woman getting her hair washed --- so I can't say if I look like her. However, several people have commented that I get PRETTTTTTY darn excited when I see a Sears Home.
Rose
Hi Rose,
Glad to see you got your book out and it's doing well. Remember me from the old house list and OHC?
I've got to get back on the Old house list one of these days. I signed off when I moved to Minneapolis last March, and never got back on. Sorry that OHC bit the dust. Any developements on that front?
Anyway, good to type to you,
Steve Zerby
"... I ran in the back door of my home yelling, "I just saw my first Fairy!" The family thought I was insane. "
Keep in mind when you bait us with a line like that here, someone less polite than me could have a lot of fun with a line like that.
Especially someone who's met you.
But I'd never do that.
Not sweet little 'ole me..................(-:Housework probably won't kill you. But why take a chance?
Yup, you especially don't want to use that line just a little West of here in Hollywood. You could even get arrested for it.... ;-)
Rose, it's good to hear from you again, I remember you from the Old House site and others.
-- J.S.
Rose,
Thanks for the info.
The Lustron I showed just sold. Do you know if there be any value in trying to get in during the change of ownership and document stuff? Measure, photos etc?_______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
Boss>>> "I plan to invite her to HogFest, since she lives close by. Is anybody that's coming single ???"
Bob seems to be up for it, and don't forget Rez. Hey Luka, a chick with money, get your best foil hat out boy.
Rose Thornton's email address
HI, can you help? I am trying to find Rose's email address. I have a chance to buy a home in CA and think the house may be a Sears home. I would like to send her pictures to get her opinion.
If you dont feel comfortable sending me her email address, maybe I can send it to you and you can forward it on? Thanks, My email address is [email protected]. Thanks, John
Don't know if you noticed, but my original post was from 2003. A lot has happened since then.
I have no contact info for Rose, and I wouldn't provide it if I did.
Rose got a lot of info for her book from Laurie Flori. But she never acknowledged it in her book. When Laurie wrote her own book, Rose sued her for (supposedly) plagiarizing info from her book. Laurie had all her research documented. After several years of legal battles, Rose apologized and retracted her claims.
Laurie's book is called "Additional Speaking". You can find it pretty easily by searching for it.
I sent Laurie an email explaining that you were looking for some information on Sears homes, and gave her your email address. Hopefully she will respond to you, but I can't guarantee it.
If you want to contact her directly have a look at this web page:
http://www.searsarchives.com/homes/enthusiasts.jsp
You can find Laurie's name about 1/3 of the way down. Click on the name and it will take you to a contact page.
If you have pictures of the house, can you post them here? There are some here who have knowledge of Sears houses and might be able to help you.
Laurie will likely want pictures too, if she's going to help ID your house.
Would ya post back and let me know how it turns out?
Thanks Ron
Hope he finds his way back to this thread.
Sears homes in Arlington, Va
I live in a 1925 Sears home in Arlington, Va. Arlington County has over 50 Sears homes and I know of 1 Lustron still standing in the south part of the county. There are quite a few examples in the McLean area as well - the one on Ingleside being almost a carbon copy of the one I live in. Interestingly, the closet in my bedroom has original cedar walls and ceiling. The bathroom is pretty much original except for sink and shower faucets.
Last Halloween a woman stopped by with her children for candy and as we chatted it turned out that she had written a dissertation and/or did some documentation about the Sears houses in Arlington. I showed her a piece of paper from the backside of the drywall (who knew drywall was being used back then?) which had at the top "Directions For the Application of Goodwall Sheet Plaster". And yes, we have the houseplans.