Sears Houses in Cary

Cary has two authenticated Sears houses standing side‑by‑side on East Main Street, plus two more with verified Sears mortgages whose models remain unidentified. Maybe you can help solve the puzzle.

The Sears Houses on Main Street

Let's start with the two known houses.

138 E. Main St., Cary.

Sears Concord.

 

The first house is a Sears Concord, though it doesn’t match the catalog illustration exactly. That’s not unusual. In the early 1930s, Sears frequently customized their split‑level designs — adding or removing dormers, widening the footprint, shifting fireplaces, or incorporating bay windows.

Mayme and Leonard Parker received a mortgage from Sears Roebuck in December 1932. They paid $10,000 for the house. Leonard worked as a factory manager, and the couple lived here until around 1942.

The entry showing a Sears closet door and a Sears newel post. The front door is new. 

A good look at the original Sears doors and door hardware. 

Is that the original tub? 

Next door to the Concord stands a Plymouth model from Sears.

148 E. Main St., Cary.

Sears Plymouth. Scan from Antique Home.

The Sears Plymouth in Cary has lost its front porch, but is still identifiable as a Plymouth.

Jorgen and Hulda Gregersen were Danish immigrants who purchased the house in September 1933. They received their mortgage from Sears Roebuck. Jorgen died just two years later in 1935 and Hulda moved soon afterwards.

The Mystery Sears Houses in Cary

Beyond Main Street, the story gets more intriguing. I have Sears mortgage records and legal descriptions for two additional houses in the same neighborhood, both built in 1921 and both facing the Fox River. We know the addresses. We know they were financed through Sears. But the models remain unidentified because only the backs of the homes are visible from the street, and the fronts are obscured.

The addresses are:

• 2119 Root Ln
• 2205 Grove Ln

The rear, street‑facing view of 2119 Root Lane shows a heavily altered structure, but county records confirm a 1921 build date — meaning the original Sears house is still inside that envelope somewhere. 

If you live on Root Lane or Grove Lane, or if you’ve seen the fronts of these homes, your insight could help crack the case. 

Copyright Disclaimer: All photographs in this post (unless otherwise noted) are from real estate aggregate Redfin.com and are used in this post for the purposes of education, consistent with 17 USC §107.