For people living in rural communities hundreds of miles away from the nearest city in 1905, if one wanted to by a mail-order ready-to-assemble kit house or an automobile, how would such a large object get delivered?

by ilikeostrichmeat
MrDowntown

Less-than-carload freight was still commonly carried by railroads at the time. A crated automobile could be shipped in a boxcar, and the crates held at a nearby railroad depot for pickup, or arrangements made with a local cartage company to deliver the crates to a residence or business. A kit house would probably require two boxcars, which could be set out on a siding or team track for unloading into wagons and delivery to the building site.