Some Assembly Required: The Story of the North American Kit Home

ID : 2903

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In this course, we will explore the history and cultural impact of kit homes in North America, focusing on their peak from 1905 to 1945. We will learn how to identify these mail-order houses and examine their rise, decline, and industrial innovations. We will also consider how kit homes intersected with issues of race and gender. Through examination of the industry and the stories of the people who lived in these homes, we will discover why they remain an important part of the cultural landscape.
Nigel Tate is an urban planning student at Michigan State University and an architectural preservationist and historian. Tate has studied kit homes for more than a decade, delivered talks across mid-Michigan, and created a guide to kit homes in Grand Blanc, MI. His interest began with a childhood discovery and has grown into ongoing research and advocacy focused on identifying and documenting these distinctive homes.
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