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Why Sears Catalog Homes Disappeared from America?

Back to Yesterday

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Why Sears Catalog Homes Disappeared from America? #wildwest #oldwest #americahistory #backtoyesterday
Once upon a time, Americans didn’t just buy furniture from a catalog — they bought entire homes. In this video, we uncover why Sears catalog homes disappeared from America, and the incredible rise and fall of one of the boldest housing experiments in U.S. history. From 1908 to 1942, Sears shipped more than 70,000 kit homes by rail — complete with numbered boards, wiring, plumbing, nails, and instructions. Buyers saved thousands while building affordable, sturdy, beautiful homes that still stand today.

So what happened? We’ll explore the economic challenges of the Great Depression, rising construction standards, union pressures, increasing competition, and the corporate missteps that ultimately ended the program. We’ll also reveal how thousands of people live in Sears homes right now — and don’t even know it.

If you’ve ever driven down a quiet street and wondered whether those charming Craftsman and Colonial Revival homes might be more than they appear, you’re in the right place.

#nostalgia #memories #americahistory #lifeinamerica #goldenage #1960s #1970s #1980s
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Back to Yesterday does not fully own the material compiled in this video. It belongs to individuals or organizations that deserve respect.
We use under: Copyright Disclaimer, Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976. "Fair Use" is permitted for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching. scholarships and research.

20 Comments

@BacktoYesterday-1 Creator 9 months ago Pinned

Thank you for watching our video! If you enjoyed it, don’t hesitate to hit the like button below. If there's anything we can improve, take a moment to leave a comment—we’re always looking to get better. Thanks so much!

@ann-mariemeyers9978 4 months ago

I lived in the same Sears house twice, once as a baby and then again as a college student.

@kathymostoller2619 4 months ago

My parents bought a Sears kit back in 1947. Still standing!!

@DramaMustRemainOnTheStage 4 months ago

I wish we could still get those exact homes 🏡

@michelleproctor9726 4 months ago

My home is a Sears home. I have spoke to some of the wives who's husbands built this home.
Thank you for the video

@leenorthcutt8421 4 months ago

Finally, a history of these homes that aren’t 5 minutes long!!!

@PrairieBend 4 months ago

Sears and Roebuck catalog was wonderful!

@CastleMysteries 3 months ago

I really appreciate how this documentary visually grounds the history. Instead of just showing wide, distant neighborhood shots, focusing closely on the raw textures of the wood, the nails, and the DIY construction process [06:02] makes the history feel so prominent and heavy. You can really feel the physical weight of what it meant for a 1910s family to build their own home from a train car. Brilliant visual reference!

@kimtillman5683 3 months ago (edited)

Just sold a sears home… I lived in it for a few yrs before I sold it as well we remodeled it and put a mother in law apartment upstairs. It’s a beautiful home . The new owners will be very happy 😃Pinnconing Michigan 👋

@ThomasKerker 4 months ago

I grew up in a really smart town in So Bethlehem N.Y. My two best friends bragged about living in a Sears house. It was nice. Well built and as good as anything in the neighborhood. Its about the people taking care of it.

@joelail6741 3 months ago

I grew up in one, and my grandparents had 2 and one of my great-grandparents also lived in one.
I loved every single one of those houses.

@Biscuitsandbacon 2 months ago

We bought our sears home from the original family. It’s almost 100 old. We were the first family to own it after the original owners. It’s located in Michigan.

@LoisRuthstrom 3 months ago (edited)

When I was little, my dream home was a Colonial Revival or maybe a Federal style home. My husband and I grew up in Houston neighborhoods filled with ranch style homes. Each one was very different from the rest, but still a ranch. My parent's home was brick, with faux shuttered, multi-paned windows, and round, smooth columns holding up the porch. My in-law's home had wooden clapboard on the outside with a living room window similar to the one featured on that house in " The Help" (where all the club women are trying to hide, when the lady who hired Minnie shows up.). Their living room window had panels that were crank operated and there were thick windowsills, which were a favorite place of many cats over the years. Their house, along with all the other 50s and 60s homes in that area, were labeled teardowns in the 2000s, so that two story homes could be built in their place. Such a waste of history! Even the beautiful, mature oak tree that my father-in-law planted in the 50s, was cut down for a stupid parking pad! Anyway, my husband and I found a ranch house similar on the outside to the home I grew up in and a floor plan similar to the one he grew up in. Not exactly what either of us planned, but we knew this could feel like home. No round columns or faux shutters, though. That's still a part of my dream. 😉

@rt.1292 4 months ago (edited)

Thank you for this historic info. Makes me wonder which homes are Sears homes in Minneapolis & St. Paul area.
I looked into a “pre-fab” home years ago. I had heard they could be made well & much more affordable. You show now prove it. I wish homes were built as well these days. I won’t mind having one except now it would be more to it with what cities want. Things are definitely not as affordable these days. Sounds like it was a wonderful program to allow people to live the American Dream!

@themindofmr.h9929 3 months ago

The whole idea sounds awesome. The actual home takes 2nd place; it was the comradery and community that sounded so great. People actually helping people, and the sense of belonging. Sorry I missed days like that. Seems the opposite mindset prevails nowadays, sadly.

@jorgegallo3261 3 months ago

Living right now in a Sears-designed house, 100 years old. Solid, using "two-by-fours" that actually measure 2"X 4".

@leila595 4 months ago

So nice that they didn't keep a database of the houses... it gave such an interesting quest!!

@CynthiaRockroth 2 months ago

I grewup in a olde town. It has over 200 old sears homes that are still standing today.
If you know what to look for you can spot them when going on house tours.( we also have original brick Victoria houses) and several stone churches from early 1800s from local stone .
( the city hall use to be a wood finish factory, and other buildings were Johnson creamery) major industries in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

@teresaschaefer4861 3 months ago

My Sears home became a summer bungalow, that stood through Super Storm Sandy,on Oakdale Long Island, My husband and I spent many summers there. Teresa Schaefer FB,Fl.