The Aladdin Company facts for kids
| Kit houses | |
| Fate | Ceased all operations |
| Founded | 1906 |
| Defunct | 1987 (Relaunched in 2014) |
| Headquarters | Bay City, Michigan and now, Vienna, Virginia |
|
Key people
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W. J. Sovereign, O. E. Sovereign, Charles W. Munro |
| Products | Houses, Garages, Various Buildings |
| Revenue | $5,400,000 (1950) |
The Aladdin Company was a very important company that sold homes through the mail. They were one of the first to offer "kit houses." Imagine getting a house in a giant box! These homes came with all the pieces already cut and numbered. This made them easier to build. People sometimes called them Aladdin Readi-Cut Houses. Other companies like Montgomery Ward and Sears, Roebuck and Co. also sold kit homes. Aladdin started in 1906 and stopped selling homes in 1987. In 2014, the company name was bought again and then sold in 2018.
Contents
The Story of Aladdin Homes
How Aladdin Homes Started
The Aladdin Company was started by two brothers, W. J. Sovereign and O. E. Sovereign. They lived in Bay City, Michigan. W. J. saw how well another company was selling "knock-down" boats. These boats came in pieces that you put together.
The brothers thought, "Why not do that with houses?" So, Aladdin started by selling boat houses, garages, and small summer cottages.
Soon after, Aladdin also started selling homes in Canada. They even opened an office in a famous building in Toronto. They had other offices across Canada too.
Aladdin's Busy Years
Aladdin quickly became one of the biggest companies selling mail-order homes. By 1915, they had sold over $1 million worth of homes! That was a lot of money back then.
In 1918, Aladdin built about 1,800 homes. This was almost 2.5% of all new homes built in the United States that year.
Aladdin was very successful selling homes to large companies. These companies would build entire towns for their workers. For example, the DuPont Company used many Aladdin homes to build the town of Hopewell, Virginia.
During World War I, Aladdin even shipped 252 houses to Birmingham, England. The Austin Motor Company used these homes to create Austin Village. This village housed workers who made weapons, tanks, and airplanes for the war.
When Sales Slowed Down
Aladdin tried to build a new town called Aladdin City in Florida. This was during a time when land sales were booming in Florida. But the boom ended quickly, which was bad for Aladdin.
Before the Great Depression, in 1928, Aladdin's sales dropped below 1,000 homes. They never sold as many homes again. In 1952, they stopped selling homes in Canada.
Aladdin kept making catalogs and selling a few hundred homes each year through the 1960s. But in the 1970s, sales dropped even more. By 1982, they stopped making homes completely. The company closed down for good in 1987.
Aladdin's Return
In 2014, a person named Charles Munro brought The Aladdin Company back to life. He re-registered the original company name and logo. Then, in 2018, the company was sold and got new owners.
Aladdin's Important Impact
The Aladdin Company, along with other mail-order home businesses, helped many Americans get affordable homes. This was especially true between the early 1900s and World War II.
They also made big steps in how houses were pre-made in factories. This helped make it easier to build many homes quickly after the war.
Finally, Aladdin helped spread popular house styles across the U.S. and Canada. These styles included the Craftsman, Bungalow, Four-Square, and Cape Cod homes.
