Someone asked for good examples of kit homes in the Lousiville area.

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...chellOne-2225Eas.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...o-1718Millerwood.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...KY-SearsAvalon-1.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...exingtonJuly1932.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...ewistonMay1932-4.jpg

The titles did not attached so ...

1. A Sears Mitchell at 225 East Elm, New Albany Indiana.

2. A Gunnison PreFab House at 1718 Millerwood, New Albany, Indiana. I suspect this was the original model house built for advertising. The Gunnison factory was just down the road. Notice the the two accent bars on the metal chimney flue, a standard gunnison detail.

3. A Sears Avalon at 109 Fairlawn, St Mathews/Lousiville Kentucky.

4. A Sears Lexington at 442 Lightfoot Road, Louisville Kentucky. I found this example with mortgage records at the courthouse. It was built by a Sears "approved" contractor in late 1932.

5. A Sears Lewiston, 427 University, lousiville Kentucky. Another example with mortgage records found at the courthouse. It was built by a Sears "approved" contractor in late 1932.

i'll pull together a set of the ones i have found.

i knew about the avalon on fairlawn. there are several others in the general area, osborns, cresents,etc.

the one on elm in new albany is just a few blocks away from our new house.

i think i saw a cresent here in new albany over the weekend, i will have to go back and take a pic.

i have only looked or/found the very recognizable sears houses, cresent, osborn and avalon. i need to get a book and spend a little time.

as i said in another thread, i have about 10 osborns i feel comfortable with, and a few that have modifications that make a little uncertain.

thanks.

Found these last wekend in New Albany

A perfect Wardway Kenwood

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...ardKenwood-5Lake.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...WardKenwood-5L-1.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...low/KenwoodHouse.jpg


And a very rare MontWard #105

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...Ward105-1906Ekin.jpg

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...ow/Model105House.jpg

The #105 has two square bays windows along the other side, althought you can't see them in this picture.

http://i53.photobucket.com/alb...ilow/Model105FP1.jpg

thanks dale.

where you actually in new albany? if so, you have to let me know if you ever come again. i can show you a bunch of sears houses across the river, plus the ones i have found here.

the one on ekin is very close.

where is the wardway? it looks familiar so i probably pass it regularly.

i have found another lewiston and a mitchell in new albany, both brick. i will try to get shots of them tonight and post.

also the mitchell you posted has been cleaned up and painted. i will post that as well.

dale, how is the wardway kenwood different from the sears dover? from the pictures, they are identical...

Okay Don and Dale-

Any time you want to go house hunting and maybe like need some .... Cincinnati Chili to fuel your search, just drop me a line and I'll be right down - it's under a two hour drive!

And if ya'll ever want to come up to Cincinnati, I can happily give you the Sears house tour.

Donna

The Wardway Kenwood has recessed round-top entrance door with an accent vent above. Aside the down-slope of the entrance gable is a singular living room window but around the corner is a grouping of three windows.

The Kenwood on Lakeview is near the intersection of Lewis & Clark Parkway and Clark Boulevard in Clarksville.

I'm currently living in Louisville six weeks and then one week up in Michigan while I manage a project buildout for a client (you think i make a living as an architectural historian? yeah right).

Sometime this summer I'll take both of you up on a tour of the kit homes you've found in New Albany and Cincinatti.

i live in new albany now but still work in louisville. i manage capital construction projects for the sewer district so i am out and about frequently. i drive different ways to job sites taking in as much of the older neighborhoods as possible, scanning the streets as i drive.

i work pretty much from memory, having browsed the sears listing on this site. i guess i need to get some books to carry with me so i can be more certain of what i find.

dale, any time you get bored with your real job, we could hit a few areas in the evenings or on weekends.

donna, would be glad to have you join us as well.

if on a saturday, we could stop at john's place and check out A&C furniture and stuff.

just let me know.

don

p.s. as a teaser, i found a pair of mirror image osborns on corners of one intersection.

Don-

Be quiet about the osborns!

I just found out one of my osborns was bulldozed to make room for some ugly cheap condos - I was not amused! So I think I'm down to 9 osborns. What a stinking shame.

Donna

Thanks for the photos Wolicki.
By the way, when I was trying to find out something about Lewis-Liberty Homes, I checked out a site that mentioned them. It also mentioned you and something about a book on the Bennet Brothers Homes. Are you working on a book on the Bennet Brothers of Tondawanda,NY?

I know you are working on the Montgomery Wards book with Rosemary, just curious. I forgot the site's name, but it had to do with building and construction,etc. Will have to look for it again.

I'd love to get my hands on an E.L.Crain of Houston ,Texas ,catalog of kit houses, so i could go to New Braunfels and Seguin and see if there are any around. Maybe for my vacation I'll go to these places and see if I can find any Wards,etc. homes, from the books I have.

Hi Hilda,

I know all about Lewis-Liberty Homes, my fathers family worked for them and he grew up in a Lewis Bungalow a few blocks from their plant in Bay City, Michigan. Sadly all the records are gone but if you have questions maybe i can help.

I was going to write about Bennett Homes but the local Historical Society got to the project first. The have a very good website about Bennett Homes:

http://www.nthistorymuseum.org...yhbennettlumber.html

The Wardway Homes book is almost done, Rose and I are in the process of a final proof. We have a lengthy intro about the history of Wardway Homes, the catalogs, the pre-cut process, and about 60 pics of actual Wardway Homes. There will be an architectural index of all the Wardway Homes arranged according to building structure (front gable, four-square, etc.) that should help readers to identify these homes.

BTW, if anyone has a Wardway Home in the Midwest (MI, OH, IN, IL or KY) with assembly stamps that are easily seen and photographed we are looking for examples to include in the book.

I have a copy of a 1920 Crain-Ready Cut House catalog. I need to check but I believe the original is with the Cincinnati Ohio Public Library. If I can find my copy I'll loan it to you or get you their Call#.

dale, first one is the same mitchell you showed at the top of this thread...



this is a stratford about a 1/4 mile from the wardway kenwwod above...



and another lewiston just two blocks from my house...



and these are suspects. the first is two houses from the lewiston.



and this is two examples of one i saw recently on one of the threads...





and the hunt goes on......

spied these today while driving between job sites...

another Mitchell (i belive)



and another stratford



and the hunt goes on...

i noticed there is a window on the side by the front door of the last stratford. the one in the post above does not have the window. is that just a custom variation or on site adjustment?

there are other variations as well. are these result of different years of contruction or just variations added by builders?

Dale, Thank you for the information on the Bennet Homes. I don't think I have seen any around here, but I could be wrong.

How long was Lewis-Liberty Homes in business?
I once had a copy of a Lewis Homes book that I later so;ld I think to someone. It had information on painting your home from Sherwin Williams and a little chapter on gardening from Grace Tabor, who was a well known landscape architect of the period.Wish I had kept it now.

Cant' wait for the Wards book to come out.
Maybe this summer for vacation I'll go drive around some of the towns to the east of me and look for some of these houses.Then another time I'll do the same thing but go out west to Uvalde and Hondo,Floresville,etc. to look.

Speaking of Lewis-Liberty Homes, I may have spotted a couple. One is near Geronimo and the other is down on TX Hwy 123 as you go towards Stockdale. I can't recall the name of the house model, but they are small.The house I am thinking of in a copy I made of some pages from a liberty Homes book, has an 11x16 living room, and the kitchen and bedroom are I guess about 8x8.
The Stockdale House has the little front porch, but the Geronimo House does not, but they both have the same layout.

In regards to the Crain House catalog Dale, I'll check out the Cincinnati Library website to see if i can get it on loan. However it might be their only copy so it might be a reference. But if you find your copy and can loan yours to me, that would be great. I'll take good care of it and send it back to you promptly.
Thank you ever so much.

Hey Hilda-

I'm in Cincinnati, so if they can't lend you the catalog, I can go to the Library and make a copy of it for you.

Donna

Hey Donna, thank you ever so much for the offer.
I did check out their website, but couldn't seem to find the E.L.Crain Ready Cut Houses book listed.Maybe looking in the wrong place.I'm sure if they have it it is probably a reference book.

Want to get down to the San Antonio Main library and snoop around in the reference section. I have seen bound volumes of Gustav Stickely's The Craftsman there.
May find some other stuff there too.

Dale, the house i mentioned in Geronimo and near Stockdale is the Sunbeam.

Thanks again Donna and Dale.

Hilda,

I could not find my copy of the Crains Ready-Cut House catalog. I may have it out on loan. The original is in the vertical files at the Cinnci Public Library.

Lewis Liberty operated from 1913 until 1973. They manufactured approximately 80,000 and many of the model homes are found near they Bay City, Michigan office. I am hoping to get a website online about Lewis-Liberty but the college kid working for me is concentrating on Gordon-VanTine catalogs.