This Sears Langston caught my eye while searching for an entirely different house on Zillow. The distinctive and memorable porch posts remain to proclaim their Sears heritage despite a rather clumsy addition on the side of the house. Images from the 1918 Sears catalog show the house as it was originally conceived.
The Langston as it appeared in the 1918 Sears Catalog. Image courtesy of the Canadian Centre for Architecture via Archive.org.
A Langston built in Rochester, Pennsylvania. Image from zillow.com.
Interiors of the Langston as they appeared in the 1918 Sears Catalog. Image courtesy of the Canadian Centre for Architecture via Archive.org.
Realtor’s photo of the living room. The room differs from the Sears catalog plan in that it has a mirrored door adjacent to the corner staircase (which itself is now open to the room rather than being hidden behind a door). Presumably this is a coat closet carved from the generous pantry shown on the floor plan. Image from zillow.com.
Realtor’s photo of the dining room. The woodwork and picture rail are identical to that shown in the catalog. The light fixture is not the same, but is period-appropriate and possibly original to the house. Image from zillow.com.
The less-than-graceful addition as seen from the back yard. Image from zillow.com.
less than graceful would be polite but credit where credit is due – the garage door is behind the house rather than another addition to the right proclaiming “I HAVE A CAR”
You make an excellent point: It could have been a LOT worse. The garage is mercifully tucked away at the back where it belongs. Still, additions which are not graceful will always annoy me. Always.
Thanks, Eric! I’ll add it to the Sears Homes database. 🙂
That’s an interesting foursquare plan, with the staircase in the rear corner. The vast majority I have seen have the stairs in one of the front corners (most commonly open, to allow for some decorative newel posts and balustrades).
The addition reminds me a lot of one I drive past on my way to visit family:
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7642511,-88.5427654,3a,25.3y,214.06h,94.29t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sUrLlOtF7SoIsOze956qvwg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
Good observation about the stair location! The addition you link to is much better than many… it is held back a good distance from the main facade so that the original house still retains its definition. It also has windows, siding and trim which match the original house. The only really iffy thing is the weirdly re-shaped window on the original house (above the additon’s roof). Overall it is much more thoughtful than the addition to the Langston above.
Here’s another addition (also on a foursquare) that you might enjoy!
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.763072,-88.3484495,3a,75y,354.31h,90.87t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sredbmK8XZel1v2fDze5YRg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
Wow… that one is actually kind of disturbing. Sort of gravity-defying. It just goes to show that you can be conscientious about matching details (roof pitch, columns, etc.) and still end up with something akin to unnerving. I wouldn’t want to be in or below that addition in a high wind… thanks for sharing!
I just bought the Sears Langston in Elysburg, Pa built in 1920. The house is as near to original from any pictures I have seen. we are presently repainting the outside, keeping the wooden columns with all the original trim. the base is concrete. The inside is exactly like the original plan. The only difference is we are putting in a new kitchen. The trim and doors, floors are original. If anyone is interested, I can send pictures.