As my dear husband says, “different people like different things,” but this house has a facade that only a mother could love.
It’s a kit home, sold by Harris Brothers of Chicago. This was one of the six national companies that sold entire kit homes through a mail-order catalog.
House Design #5010 was offered in 1915 and gone by 1916, so it didn’t last long. I’ve only seen one other #5010 and it was in Louisville, Illinois. There’s a photograph of #5010 (the one in Louisville) in our book, The Mail-order Homes of Montgomery Ward.
The house below is in Buckhannon, West Virginia, home of Melvin Wayne Ringer, Senior, father of one of my favorite people (Melvin Wayne Ringer, II).
Do you have a Harris Brother’s #5010 in your neighborhood? If so, please take a photo and send it to us. It’s a pretty unique house and not one you’re likely to miss!
To learn more about Wardway Homes, click here.
To learn more about Harris Brothers, click here.
To buy Rose and Dale’s book on Wardway, click here.
Harris Brothers House #1505 as seen in the 1915 catalog.
Close-up of the house
Here it is in Buckhannon, WV., Harris Brothers Kit home #1505.
Another view!
Floor plan
To learn more about kit homes, click here.
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