Sears homes

Viktorija Bilić

Sears homes: Building the American Dream

ISBN 978-3-86821-011-8, 175 S., 66 Abb., Bilddatenbank mit 335 Abb., € 26,00 (CD-ROM, 2008)

(Cultural Studies in the Heartland of America, Bd. 5)

Sears, Roebuck and Company successfully sold kit houses by mail in the years between 1908 and 1940. The all-American Sears homes represent a unique slice of American history and culture. This work examines the distinctly American cultural phenomenon of mail-order homes and presents Sears homes in the American Midwest. The thesis includes interviews with owners of mail-order homes and presents the results of a survey for Sears homeowners. Additionally, a focus is put on today’s fascination with these historic homes, since interest in these houses is growing in the United States, and has led to the construction of modern kit homes and houses resembling the early Sears homes. The thesis concludes with a glossary of architectural and construction terms, and an image database on Sears houses with pictures of Sears homes in the state of Indiana and images from old Sears catalogs.