Only seven years after construction began on the first home on St. Paul’s Summit Avenue—now the longest stretch of Victorian-era homes in the country—and four years after Minnesota achieved statehood, a former representative in the Minnesota Legislature Frederick Driscoll moved to St. Paul and established the Daily Union newspaper.
Another 22 years later in 1884, Driscoll tapped local architect William Willcox to design an impressive $25,000 mansion at 266 Summit Avenue to replace the property’s original home constructed in 1857 for lawyer Henry Masterson. The resulting eight-bedroom, 12-bathroom mansion—now transformed with almost 137 years’ worth of renovations—hit the real estate market this October, listed by Anderson Realty’s Mike Smith and Rebekah Cook, for $1.95 million. (And, as of publication, the home’s status is contingent.)
“I love how romantic this home is,” Smith says. “It has a very special allure. The layout is an adventure, with so many special moments and inspiring spaces along the way.”
In 1863, Driscoll merged his newspaper with the Minnesota Pioneer—the precursor to what is now the St. Paul–based Pioneer Press—and worked closely with the paper’s first editor Joseph Wheelock to cover some of the important community news of the day. A biographic memorial, kept in the Library of Congress’s digital archives, describes the pair as “early in adopting and persistent in maintaining the standards of the press which made public opinion the paramount force and society and government.”
The now-historic Queen Anne–style home—complete with signature bays, dormers, and a distinctive three-story tower—was later purchased by lumber baron Frederick Weyerhaeuser. The home’s architect also designed a number of homes and churches throughout St. Paul, Stillwater, and other parts of the Midwest, including a Presbyterian church in Stillwater and another in Chippewa Falls, as well as the original Old Main building at Macalester College.
Throughout the home’s history, it has seen a number of remodels—the earliest of which was in 1916, when architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray (designer of the Cathedral of Saint Paul) renovated and expanded the house. When the home was listed in 2019, the Star Tribune reported that during the 1950s, the mansion was given to Macalester College and later was sold to the Indianhead Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Reportedly, several Boy Scouts found a wall safe “full of jewelry” that was returned to the Weyerhaeuser family. Later, the home belonged to the Catholic Church and housed several nuns. In 2001, the home was selected as a Showcase Home of the American Society of Interior Designers.
According to Smith, the sellers of the home discovered a small area in the attic that features a section of the original 1884 ballroom ceiling and partial wall, complete with intricate painting and a scene of a castle in an English countryside. “This presumably was covered during 1915 renovations and modernization of the home, which added the five bedrooms on the third floor,” Smith says.
Other original elements of the Victorian include the exterior’s red pressed brick and three-story tower. Inside, the home is a “quintessential High Victorian home that has been preserved and modernized for years, offering an unparalleled lifestyle experience,” according to the real estate listing. The main level features its original layout, exuding “romance and adventure.” Take a peek at the oak living room and “magical” green marble sunrooms, plus a high-end custom kitchen. The second level features three unique bedroom suites, with the primary bedroom including not one but two bathrooms, complete with a soaking tub, walk-in shower, walk-in sauna, and walk-in closet. Outdoors, a recently renovated five-plus car garage and half-acre lot secures the property’s spot as “among the finest homes in St. Paul.”
Check out the full listing for 266 Summit Avenue via andersonrealtymn.com.
November 8, 2023
11:16 AM