SCOTTS
Morgan and Pam Macomber dreamed of finding just the right house -- one evoking a special ambiance of the past. They'd driven past the red house, but they had no idea it had been a 1928 Sears kit home, a Mitchell, one of 370 designs offered in the Sears Roebuck catalog between 1908 and 1940.
The 1,600-square-foot house follows lines of English cottage architecture. Two picturesque gables, brick chimney, rounded front door and colonial bench appealed to the young couple, who were living in an apartment over a party store in downtown Scotts.
"We were ready for a place of our own with a backyard," Pam Macomber said.
That was 13 years ago. Morgan Macomber's mother, Sheri Macomber, a Realtor in Kalamazoo, had screened houses for them, and the red house was the first home the couple seriously looked at.
"We fell in love with this house as soon as we walked through it," Pam Macomber said. "It was everything we wanted and more, and it had the distinction of being something different." They bought it.
Sears sold about 75,000 kit homes between 1908 and 1940. Each piece of premium-grade lumber was pre-cut and stamped with an identifying number. The shipment consisted of as many as 30,000 pieces, including 750 pounds of nails and 27 gallons of paint and varnish. Plumbing and electrical fixtures and heating systems were not included but could be ordered separately. Sears provided detailed assembly instructions and warranties and offered liberal financing. Many people assembled the kits themselves, saving labor costs and assuring quality workmanship.
Straight and flat
Pam Macomber, an administrator at Quality Air, Heating and Cooling in Portage, said: "Morgan had heard about Sears homes. I didn't know you could buy a home from a catalog."
Morgan Macomber, now property superintendent for Catalyst Development Co. in Kalamazoo, began working in the home-improvement business with his father when he was 14 years old. He was familiar with what makes a good house.
"In many old houses the walls and corners aren't straight," Morgan Macomber said "Here everything is straight and flat, as it was all built with pre-cut wood.
"The house doesn't look large on the outside, but when you get inside it's spacious." Morgan Macomber said. The arches between the rooms and the hardwood floors appealed to the couple, and they liked the flow of the rooms, scalloped work on the ceilings, built-in dining room cupboard and brass hardware.
They knew cosmetic work would be required, but Morgan Macomber has done all the carpentry, plumbing and electrical upgrades himself. He has kept the integrity of the house while making practical changes. He has replaced all of the windows, put on a new roof and repainted the wood-shake siding, keeping its original color.
"A number of locals urged us not to change the color, for this was their red house," Pam Macomber said. "We've even received mail addressed to the red house in Scotts."
The couple gave themselves more space when they added a deck, and the most recent project last winter was the installation of a bathroom upstairs in a closet. This was welcomed by 11-year old twins, Sydney and Taylor, and 9-year-old Megan, who had been sharing the only downstairs bath with their parents.
The girls, who also share a dormitory-style bedroom on the second floor, would each like a room of their own, but they manage. The basement, which has a cement floor and 7-foot ceilings, contains a Ping-Pong table, and the girls have use of a downstairs bedroom as a game and computer room. The original floor plan, which has not been changed, includes a living room, dining room, kitchen, two bedrooms and bath downstairs and one bedroom and storage space upstairs.
1928 train delivery
Folks in Scotts have followed the history of the house. June Bailey, who has lived all her life in Scotts, recalls the arrival of the train in 1928 with the Sears and Roebuck house kit in a boxcar.
"Brad Thompson came into town with his horse and wagon, stopped at the depot and hauled the pieces to the site," Bailey said.
According to a 1992 article in the Climax Crescent, Hart and Arlie Fisher were the original purchasers of the home. The cost was $2,601, according to the 1928 Sears catalog -- more than $70,000 in today's dollars.
Bonnie and Brad Thompson bought it from the Fishers about 1959. Bonnie lived there until the early '90s. Michael and Misty Hayward owned the house for a couple of years and did some interior painting and landscaping and built a garage before selling it to the Macombers in 1996.
Morgan Macomber grew up north of Scotts near Galesburg. Pam Macomber was from Richland. They were married at the Scotts Mill and had their reception at the Scotts Pride Community Center. They liked the Scotts community. This was a house they loved at first sight and continue to enjoy.