Originally published by Laraine Shape on September 4, 2014
Click here to see the original Sears catalog listing for the Del Rey model
Two days ago I woke up to a gray, rainy day and the ugly weight of two bogged real estate transactions thanks to an incompetent appraiser, nit picky underwriter, useless mortgage broker and a short sale from Hell. So, in order to get my mind off of things I decided to spend the day looking for Sears houses in the Mariemont, Terrace Park, Newtown and Milford area.
I knew from the Beatrice Lask thesis that there were a couple of Sears houses in Mariemont (a Maywood, a Willard and a Lewiston), but imagine my surprise at finding two more (and possibly four!) all in a row just outside the city limits. How fun! A Kilbourne model, a Crescent model and two suspected Hamilton models all snuggled up on the same street together. Makes me wonder about their history. Was it a builder that built all four? Or maybe a family that owned the parcel of land and wanted to stay close together?
And then there’s Terrace Park, a beautiful enclave of luxurious homes, a horse farm, a country club, a swim club, a prestigious elementary school and very little else. Oh yes…and a pink Victorian house (my favorite color). The landscape doesn’t feature much in the way of business which is just fine with me.
I discovered the eclectic mix of 9 Sears houses in Terrace Park via a historical society newsletter online. Unfortunately, there are only 8 of the 9 left…including a Del Rey model, a Kilbourne model, a Crescent model, a Dover model, a Fullerton model, a Somerset model, and 2 Martha Washington models. The 9th, a Stanford model at 709 Myrtle, is now, tragically, a vacant lot. A real estate FOR SALE sign stands in its stead.
By the way, Terrace Park has a building survey of all houses and buildings past and present. Hats off to the people who accomplished that task.
Just down the road a piece is Milford. Home of Lehr’s Meat Market and the nice deli lady who will make you a turkey and cheese sandwich on white bread with lettuce, tomato and mayo to eat on the fly. Milford is a sweet little city rich with Sears houses. As a matter of fact, there are so many of them in Milford I decided to do a separate post about them. Stay tuned
And last, but not least, is Newtown. The little village across the river from Mariemont. Home to that pretty blue craftsman bungalow I love, a fishery, a soft serve ice cream joint and the Main Street Cafe bleu cheese burger – an absolute MUST try next time you’re over that way. There’s a perfect little Vallonia model on Church Street that’s now serving as a dental lab, another Vallonia on Plum Street, a sweet yellow Oakdale model on Main Street that’s just as cute as it can be and a Sunbeam model also on Plum St.
In spite of the rain, I felt like a kid in a candy store. Next time my friend and Sears house mentor, Cindy Catanzaro, comes to Cincinnati I’m taking her over that way to show her all the eye candy for her Sears Facebook page.
Here’s the photo tour.
Click here to see The Maywood model
Click here to see the Lewiston model
Click here to see The Willard model
Click here to see The Kilbourne model
Click here to see The Hamilton model
Click here to see the Crescent model
Click here to see the Martha Washington model
Click here to see the Del Rey model
Click here to see the Fullerton model
Click here to see the Dover model
Click here to see the Somerset model
Click here to see another Stanford model
Click here to see the Sears Vallonia model
Click here to see the Sears Oakdale model
Click here to see the Sears Sunbeam model
Comments made on original post
Andrew Mutch- Sept 6, 2014– I don’t think 903 Elm, Terrace Park is a Crescent. The windows and the front porch aren’t a good match. Also, I don’t think those are Hamiltons. Do you know what year they were built? Otherwise, that’s a lot of good looking Sears houses there!
reply– Laraine Shape- Sept 6, 2014- Andrew – Tsk tsk. I dare you to tell the Terrace Park historical society that about 903 Elm. As for the Hamiltons…you could be right about me
being wrong. They were built in 1929 and 1933 (8548). The size and footprints are right. I’m going to correspond with the owners and see if we can get an insight on the interior details.
reply– Andrew Mutch- Sept 9, 2014 -Living in a Hamilton, it’s the one I know well! They key difference is I’ve never seen a Hamilton without the hipped dormer on the
front and the side over the living room window (although I just saw my first Hamilton where someone added a 2nd floor and moved the hipped roof up a story – yikes!). Also, the roof line on the front extends over porch so that it’s enclosed.
As for the Terrace Park house, I would show them that house next to the Mariemont house, which is a good example of the type. I’ve gotten more cautious with the Crescents now that I’ve seen enough clones. In fact, I think I have a couple in the Ann Arbor that I
thought were Crescents but may just be knockoffs.
reply– Laraine Shape- Sept 9, 2014– Thanks for your input Andrew. You definitely know your stuff when it comes to Sears Houses. Cindy speaks very highly of you.
reply-Andrew Mutch- Sept 12, 2014-Thanks! Cindy’s been a wonderful resource in learning the ins and outs of the houses. I’m so glad that you’ve been documenting all of these houses. It’s great to have them as reference when trying to ID houses I find up here in Michigan.
Karrie- Sept 6, 2014– I love the houses on Wooster and every time I pass them I point them out to my husband.. I had no clue they were Sears homes. Very cool. Great blog.
reply-Laraine Shape- Sept 6, 2014– Karrie – thanks! It was a total surprise for me when I saw them. Such fun. I love Sears houses.
Sears Houses in Cincinnati 