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| 1767 Clifton, Highland Park. |
Sears Stratford. |
The Sears Stratford was a rustic English bungalow sold from 1930 to 1933. The exterior featured brick and stone.
Designed by
architect David S. Betcone, the Stratford had a storybook style that made it one of Sears’ most distinctive late-era homes. Offered as a one-and-a-half–story design, the Stratford appealed to buyers who wanted a solid, well-proportioned house with traditional styling but without the cost of a full two-story model.
This Sears Stratford sits in Highland Park's Sunset Park neighborhood.
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| Closeup of the trim and shutter detail. |
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The shutters that Sears sold in 1930. There's the clover.
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| The Stratford has a spacious 13'x17' living room with a cozy wood-burning fireplace with a stone surround.The triple front windows, which were originally full-length French doors, fill the space with light. On the right, you can glimpse the vestibule and the original Sears front door. |
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| The recessed built-in bookcases were standard in this model. The pink makes them pop! One arched doorway leads to the sunroom (a modification from the original Stratford design) and the other doorway leads to the dining room. |
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| The sun room adds welcome light and charm. |
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| The formal dining room. |
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| I think the refrigerator is located past the doorway on the left. It was there on the original floor plan. |
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| The first floor has two bedrooms and a full bath, while the upper level includes a third bedroom, large loft area, and second full bath. |
The original owners were William Ralph, Jr. and his wife Margaret. In July 1931, they took out a primary mortgage for $6,600 from Sears Roebuck, followed by an additional
$900 secondary mortgage. I suspect the $900 was for the optional sunroom and also perhaps a one-car detached garage. While definitive proof would require original plans or invoices, the timing and amount strongly suggest that the bright sunroom may have been part of the original Sears order rather than a later addition.
The original building permit also mentions Sears, Roebuck & Company.
William’s parents lived just down the street, making this Sears Stratford part of a small family enclave.
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| William and Margaret by the front door. Public photo from Ancestry.com. |
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| The same door today! |
William worked for
37 years as caddie master at Lakeshore Country Club in Glencoe. Margaret also worked at the club, employed as a servant.
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A photograph believed to date from around 1946 shows William (left) and his son Victor (right) at the Lakeshore Country Club. The building visible behind three men in the image matches the historic clubhouse, designed by noted architect Howard Van Doren Shaw. Around this time, William, Margaret, and their two sons moved to Texas. Public photo from Ancestry.com.
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Highland Park has more Sears homes to see!
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