You know what’s so sweet about this time capsule: It demonstrates just how a little mid century modest house that looks sort of … innocuous, albeit sweet… on the outside, can contain so many well-maintained delights on the inside. Could it be that even more so than the owners of lavish mid century modern homes, the owners of unpretentious mid century modest homes poured so much love and care into their beloved little castles? Let’s look inside and be delighted.
Minnesota realtor Tim Kindem has been a fan of Retro Renovation for years — so when he had the chance to list this 1955 retro ranch home in South Minneapolis — he made sure to let us know. Pam and I both immediately drawn to the room above, each recognizing pieces from our own vintage collections.
Yup, that light is the same wagon wheel light Pam has in her office — and that retro freestanding cone fireplace looks just like mine. Thanks to some great photos of the property, courtesy of photographer Christopher Rhode from Obeo, we can see all the original features in this home. Plus, it’s clear there were updates in the 1970s — delicious, too!
We’re hoping whoever becomes the new owner loves the vintage style of the house as much as we do.
From the listing:
Price: $309,900
Square footage: 2,292
Bedrooms: 5
Bathrooms: 3The Mid-Century Modern Palace Of Your Dreams Has Come True!
The Mid-Century Modern palace of your dreams has come true! 2 brick, wood-burning fireplaces, & an orange, free-standing cone fireplace in 3 season porch. Giant lower level rec room. Bedrooms with built-ins. Stairs to garage storage. So much space. So much more. Be amazed!
Oh yeah — take a look at this pretty pink tiled bathroom with a flower power decals on the toilet. The vanity is super cute, and the pink and oak combo is the same thing I’ve got going on in my retro pink bathroom remodel. Those two little doors set into the wall have me wishing for more available wall space to add some in my bathroom. My guess is the top one is for storage and the bottom is a laundry chute.
The house also has a blue/aqua vintage bathroom with what appears to be terrazzo flooring — or a terrazzo-like linoleum. Interestingly, the sink seems to be the same one as in the pink bathroom, only this time is is set in a laminate counter instead of tile. It is also fun to note how they painted the trim to match the bathroom.
More cool vintage details await in the lower level rec room: a game room/bar area with a fun checked floor, and do I spy a fireplace on the back wall?
Mega thanks to realtor Tim Kindem from Keller Williams for letting us feature this property and Photographer Christopher Rhode from Obeo for giving us permission to share his great photos of the property here with all of you.
Still more to see in our slideshow:
Tips to view slide show: Click on first image… it will enlarge and you can also read my captions… move forward or back via arrows below the photo… you can start or stop at any image:
Jenny A. says
Hi Pam and Kate!
I just sent you an e-mail containing a link to a time capsule you might be interested in.
Also, I love the basement of this house in MN!
Carole says
My in-laws raised four kids, and hosted many a family gathering in a 1400 sq ft ranch (built in the late 50’s). They still live in the house (it only had 3 bedrooms and one bathroom when originally built – but the garage was converted to house the master and a second bath). In those days, people lived together, not spread out and apart, and outdoor living played a role in the space that those families shared and enjoyed (although in Oregon that’s a bit more difficult nine months out of the year). Bathrooms were a shared space, regardless of the number of people, and not every child got his or her own room. They shared, until an older sibling moved out. At least that’s how it worked for my husband, and most other kids I knew.
It kills me that this house is just over 2000 square feet and considered ‘modest’. People need to readjust their thinking.
All three houses that I’ve lived in as a married woman have been under 1600 sq ft. Not one of them felt small or cramped, except maybe my current one, and we remedied the issue in the main space by opening the wall between kitchen and living room. We also installed larger windows along the entire back of the house. Now the rooms flow from one to the other, natural light comes in, and the house lives like a ranch was meant to live. The bathrooms are another story. I’ve complained about those on this page more than once. Both of mine could fit inside of one in the home above.
All of our houses have been three bedroom, two bath, and except for our split level, everything was on one floor. From the looks of the basement in the photo, there are no bedrooms down there, just free space. I think this house probably sits farther back into the yard than it looks.
Ever wonder if those families who lived smaller under one roof, were closer than some of the families who live separately under the same roof? Different times certainly.
An interesting look back on homes that used to be the norm. Thanks for sharing this.
Cynthia says
It’s funny…my 2800 SF tri-level is large by Retro Renovation and mid-century modest standards. But in my neighborhood of pops and scrapes, replaced with 5000-6000 SF mini-mansions, my house is considered rather small. 😉
Across the street, we have a sweet little ranch that is just about 1400 SF (no basement). It went on the market last spring, and I was very worried that a developer would but it and scrape it. Instead, a young couple bought it, converted the attached garage to a bedroom and bath, and now have a nice-sized 3 BR, 2 BA home. Kudos to them! Love my new neighbors…
pam kueber says
I answered this question on Scott’s comment… I was assuming this house was 1100 s.f. up and down….
pam kueber says
I answered questions re square footage in Scott’s question… Yes, 2000 s.f. would not be MCModest in my book. I was assuming this house was 1100 s.f. up and down….
diane says
My ranch home was built in the early 50’s and has a full basement and comes in just a little under 5000 sq ft! I can only imagine what people must have thought when this home was being built as it is somewhat large by today’s standards. Oddly enough, the couple who built the home had no children but the home has 5 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms!
Shari D. says
Carole – I read your comments about the family with 4 children living in what would be considered a very small house by today’s standards. I grew up in houses like that – we moved around a lot – and I remember it vividly. My I am oldest of 4 kids, and my husband is oldest of 5. I was lucky a few times – being 8 years older than my next sibling, I got my own bedroom most all of the time, but the boys always shared a room, and my sister, because of the distance in our ages – I’m 9 years older than she – got her own bedroom as well. Had we had more kids, I’m sure there would have been much more sharing going on! I had my own room, EXCEPT ONCE – when I was in 8th grade, about 13-14, and my sister was FOUR – we had to share a bedroom in a 3 bedroom apartment. It was definitely a disaster! It only lasted one year – or as long as it took for the lease to run out and for us to get into a 4 bedroom house! But I surely knew plenty of kids in school who were part of larger families in smaller houses and nobody had their own bedroom, until, like you said, an older sibling moved out, or they moved into a larger house. Most of the time though, it was the older sibling leaving the nest. And we all had family gatherings in our homes, no matter how big or small – we made do and enjoyed every minute.
When my husband and I bought our first – and still only – house in 1990, after 15 years of marriage, two kids and renting apartments. They shared a single bedroom as babies – only 21 months apart – for quite a while.They got their own bedrooms when they were about 4 and 2. That was a 3 bedroom townhouse apartment, where we lived for 8 years, before buying this house. We moved into a 1900 sf ranch house, with three bedrooms, a large living room, an eat-in kitchen with a small closet-type pantry, a utility/laundry room, and ONE bathroom. Each child got their own room of course, since our daughter was in 6th and our son was in 4th grade, However, that single bathroom situation did not change, and has not since we moved in here. The way the house is constructed, there’s no way to add a bath anyplace that would be useful without adding another entire room. It did however, contribute to developing skills in negotiation, timing, self-discipline, and scheduling! Each child had a specific time frame in which to get their bathing needs taken care of, in conjunction not only with each other but with their parents as well who both worked full time day jobs, and if they needed to alter it, it was up to them to negotiate with whoever was interfering with their needs to make it happen. Same with the laundry. When they were each about 10 or so, they were made responsible for taking care of their own laundry. I taught them all the basics of sorting, fabric care, machine operation, hanging clothes out on the clothesline or dryer use, laundry products and their usages, etc. Same thing with the scheduling, negotiation, self-discipline, etc. It certainly didn’t do any of them any harm, as they are long ago grown up, on their own and doing quite well at it. Our son is single and living independently on his own and doing very well at it, and our daughter is married for 11 years, and along with her husband, are raising 5 children in a very small house! The boys all share a large bedroom connected with a “Play Room”, with two large bunk beds. Their little sister, who is 4 – only one girl and four boys but they get along famously – has her own bed and bedroom, but prefers to spend her time (now) with her brothers. We’ll see how that goes as they get older though…..
I think living together like we have all done has been beneficial for all of us in many ways, but the way that families seem to have split themselves up, even within one house, with everyone having their own room, own TV and computer, own bathroom and such, has made everyone rather self-centered and not dependent on each other for anything. It’s like raising many individuals, but not as a family.
pam kueber says
My father had seven siblings. They grew up and lived with their parents on a farm in North Dakota. This was the late 1930s into the 1950s. The children shared one bedroom, unheated, upstairs under the roofline. There was no indoor bathroom. Talk to them today — and they have wonderful memories of this time. They are all very close.
Jenny says
Wow. Folks sure were hardier back then, eh?
Jennifer in PA says
I live in a 1600 square foot 1953 time capsule ranch. we have a game room and family room in the basement (have the same pool table shown in this listing), but we always laugh that our two kids, two dogs, husband and I always seem to be in the same room, the living room, within about 20 feet of each other.
pam kueber says
Humans are extremely social creatures. We like to be near each other. We need to be near each other. We thrive when we are near each other.
Ranger Smith says
I want a laundry chute that will send the clothes directly to the cleaners!
tammyCA says
Hee-hee…or right into the washing machine.
Mary Elizabeth says
I DID have a laundry chute in my first 1939 house that didn’t go directly into the washer but to a bin right next to it in the basement laundry room! There was a large opening for the chute in the upstairs bath (for bed and bath linens) and also a smaller, mailbox-sized one in the kitchen (for dish towels, tablecloths, napkins, etc.) One time the cat was exploring that little door in the kitchen and whoops! YEOW! But luckily she landed on a pile of towels. And the baby used to throw toys down the chute.
I don’t know why they stopped making laundry chutes in houses–so convenient and fun for all. 🙂
Jenny says
Some codes don’t allow the installation of a laundry chute. I’ve read that it’s because they’re a fire hazard, in that a fire from one level can “short-circuit” all the way to the highest level very quickly via the laundry chute. I have a laundry chute in my house, which we love. It has a smoke alarm at the top of it…
pam kueber says
Makes sense to me — get yourself to professionals, though, to understand the latest on this issue!
Todd says
Definitely a time warp, minus the kitchen. I don’t think they ever used that fire cone fireplace with the full drapes right behind them. If they ever did, we would be looking at a bare lot listing for sale 🙂
Allen says
Ok…. Now that we have a BEAUTIFUL!! time capsule to look at all weekend (thanks Kate!!) I just wanted to repost one more time about this wonderful 1972 house for sale in Tullahoma, TN by architects Joyce, Pearson, and Prout. Lee Prout was an apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright. The MLS # is 1480303 and here is some information about it.
http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/104-Short-Springs-Rd_Tullahoma_TN_37388_M85914-25632?source=web
http://www.architectureforsale.com/printable.php?property_ID=649
I don’t know if you can feature it on the blog or not but would like for it to be sold to a sympathetic buyer.
Thanks for the work that you all do!!
Cynthia says
Love this little house. Drooling over the basement.
As far as size…I’m guessing at least a couple of the bedrooms and 1 or 2 bathrooms are in the basement. There are a lot of houses like that around here…almost a whole other house in the basement. That keeps the footprint smaller, which is necessary on small city lots. Or at least, it used to be. Here in the urban neighborhoods in Denver, a lot of these little gems get scraped and replaced with enormous houses that have a postage stamp for a yard. Breaks my heart every time I see another one go down.
Jenny says
It’s a 2300sf house. You can’t count basement square footage as living space, unless it’s a walkout, which it doesn’t look like it is. A 2300sf house is not exactly small! Our MCM ranch house is 1800sf and we have 4 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms — so I’m pretty sure everything is upstairs.
pam kueber says
I responded to this issue on Scott’s comment (which comes up first in my dashboard). Yes, 2200 s.f. is not MCModest. But I still don’t know what the exact layout of this house is. unclear.
Jenny says
Sorry — didn’t see your answer to others; Scott’s question comes up almost dead last on my computer!
pam kueber says
I was answering in reverse – as this is the way that I see them in my dashboard.
pam kueber says
I just found this house on the mls. I didn’t number crunch everything but I think the s.f. includes the basement space, the porch and two bedrooms tucked on the second floor.
Jenny says
Hm. Well, around here, that’s cheating — the total square footage should only include living space, which (in Michigan anyway) means only the above-ground area. Not the porch, not the garage, not the basement (unless it’s a walkout or has egress windows). And you can’t count a room as a bedroom unless it has a closet.
But that might not be the rule everywhere.
pam kueber says
agreed
Shelly Isaacson says
Here in Minneapolis, a bedroom does not have to have a closet in it. There must be a smoke detector within 15 feet of every ‘sleeping room’ I thought the closet rule applied here, but everything I checked online said not so…. They are considering the basement, most likely the pool table room as ‘finished living space’ the laundry area with the concrete floor may not be considered living space… hard to say. South Minneapolis is a great area!
Also, Pam, an HGTV show on retro renovation would be a great way to start undoing the myths.. as a designer myself, I am an advocate of preserving the original design integrity of any dwelling, incorporating the details into the redesign.
pam kueber says
Alas, I have a story about the TV show idea…. I need to post about it sometime.
Jenny says
Oh, please do! Though I’m guessing it ends badly… ?
Shari D. says
MAYBE – it’s time to flood HGTV with requests for a show like the one everyone’s talking about here, and especially with details about WHY it needs to be done! Explain all the things we find revolting and that bring us to tears when the sledgehammers come out and the cabinets are completely destroyed instead of lovingly recycled to Habitat For Humanity recycle stores, and WHY beautifully done tile bathrooms should NOT be torn out with all the tender loving care of a “bull in a china shop!” And why when they claim to be “green” in their replacement with allegedly “green” items – while their ripping, tearing, smashing and shredding and sending to the garbage dumps instead of taking care of and recycling them is anything BUT “green”!
I think the show idea is wonderful, but without demand from the viewing public, it’s not going to happen. They can certainly find ways to take up viewing time showing the horrors they claim people want, with the “open concept” (the “fingernails on blackboards” as someone mentioned – it makes me cringe when I hear it because I do NOT want a house like that at all), the totally overdone granite counter tops/stainless steel appliances in kitchens are so copycat, “last year’s 15 minutes” and unimaginative. And NOT “maintenance free” by any means! Every house is the same in the same ways, every inside “open concept layout” is the same arrangement. Heck, even in the days of the Levittown/post WWII suburbs, they managed to make the same floor plans look different on the exterior elevations when they were building so many homes every 15 minutes. Now, the houses on the shows are done one-by-one, and have the time to be individualized, but they stick to the same old same old stuff.
Joetta Fort says
I hope I find some folks like you on this thread for my next listing, a mid-century modest with pink bathroom! Just gotta get the blue, 1980s carpet torn out and it will be on the market here in Arvada CO.
Jenny says
Joetta, I think there are folks like us everywhere. You just have to find us!!!
Good luck with your MCM home sale.
Shari D. says
Joetta – Just make sure when you market the house, that you definitely TARGET the folks who are looking FOR a house like it – not that are looking to REMUDDLE a house like that by gutting it with sledgehammers and putting in over-rated, soon-to-be-dated crap to replace it! There are obviously many of us out here who LOVE them the way they are, and will treat them with kindness, restore what needs restoring so that the charm of the original is maintained, and live in them with loving care so that they stay the way they were intended to be.
Jenny says
Unfortunately that kitchen is NOT original to the house; it’s a 70s kitchen (wrong era). Might have to do something with that since there’s very little charm in the current kitchen (in my opinion).
Jenny says
OMG this is my DREAM house. Wish I could find one like it in the Detroit area — unfortunately all of the little gems have been “updated” and “improved” (not to my eye, though). Wish I had a good reason to move to Minneapolis — I’d be on this! Hope whoever buys it treasures it and keeps it as original as possible; it would be a shame to “update” those bathrooms.
Pat Gaylor says
No, You’re not an endangered species ! It’s criminal what people do to kitchens in the name of ‘remodelling’..cheap, cheezy cabinetry doesn’t look any better with a granite top on it. SO OVER it. Great idea about the HGTV show…what about a very cool kitchen with laminate tops? Techno advances in laminate edges, digital printing and textured finishes make them sooo gorgeous now. AND they’re made in the good old USA.
And…I’d use that kick-ass range in the basement in the new kitchen !