The “Westly” Sears Kit House

Lewisburg, Greenbrier County

March 2019 Update: The Greenbrier County Commission recently enclosed the building with siding. It is still vacant.

2017 Update: No updates have been made available to PAWV in 2017.

As of the last update to PAWV in 2016, the Lewisburg Historic Landmarks Commission noted that there was no preservation progress on the building in 2016.   The house, which is being adaptively reused by a county agency, is still in need of paint and maintenance.

2013: The youngest of the newly-listed endangered sites is the “Westly”, a Sears Kit House located in the Lewisburg Historic District between the Greenbrier County Court House and the Governor Price House in Lewisburg (Greenbrier County). The “Westly” was one of the most popular kit homes sold through the Sears, Roebuck, and Company mail-order catalogs in the early-twentieth century and was made available to residents in Lewisburg with the expansion of the railroad from 1905-1907. The “Westly” and all Sears’s kit homes are special because they were delivered in over 10,000 labeled pieces with assembly instructions. In 1924, the original owner purchased and assembled the home himself. In 1941, the Greenbrier County Commission purchased the dwelling and used it as the office for the West Virginia University Extension Service. In recent years, the building has sat vacant, and although it is deteriorating, it maintains the original floor plan and is in good condition. The Lewisburg Historic Landmarks Commission and the Lewisburg Preservation Alliance nominated the site to bring awareness to the significance of these unique kit homes. The groups are engaging the Greenbrier County Commission to locate a new use or sensitive buyer to preserve and reuse the dwelling.

Download 2013 Report