An Authenticated Sears Sheridan in Barrington’s Historic District

221 Coolidge, Barrington. This is an authenticated Sears Sheridan built around 1925 (Google Streetview). 

Sears Sheridan from the 1928 Modern Homes catalog.

The Sears Sheridan was marketed as a practical Craftsman-style bungalow with wide eaves, large porch, and a comfortable floor plan suited to middle-class families of the period. 

Today, the large porch is enclosed. 

French doors lead into a warm and welcoming interior. 

The Sheridan living room, as shown in the 1925 Modern Homes catalog.

The living room could be built as a separate space or combined with the dining room, according to Sears specifications. 

Three bedrooms upstairs could be finished at an extra charge of $243. Those are original doors from Sears, so I suspect they were finished at the time of construction.

This bathroom was originally a small third upstairs bedroom.

What makes this house especially interesting is its provenance. The original shipping label survives, showing that the materials were shipped to Irving Schumann, a master carpenter for the Chicago & Northwestern Railway. 

The shipping label with Irving's name on it. Photo courtesy of Matt Hader.

Schumann likely built the house himself, applying his professional skills to construct his family’s home. By 1930, Irving and his wife Frieda had moved to Forest Park. 

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.