Ramsey County History – Fall 1978: “James Henry Skinner’s Mansion Reflects Summit Avenue in Its Prime”

James Henry Skinner’s Mansion Reflects Summit Avenue in Its Prime
Author: Caroline Harney

A history and description of the house at 385 Portland Avenue, St. Paul, designed by Clarence H. Johnston Sr. The design of the mansion “combines Georgian and neo-classical styles,” and the construction is all brick. “The interior of the mansion is as grand as the exterior, with fifteen fireplaces, eight bedrooms, elegant living and dining rooms, and a billiard room with a nine-foot ceiling in the basement.” James Skinner made his first fortune in the fur business with the firm of Lanpher, Skinner and Company. He and wife, Annie, bought the Portland Avenue land in 1901. Skinner founded the Merchants Trust Company, later First Trust Company, in 1915, and also served the government in London during World War I. He died in 1926, but his wife remained at the house until her death in 1945. Railroad lawyer Edwin Matthias and family bought the house in 1945 and lived there until 1957, when it was purchased by John B. Hilton and family. The Hiltons lived there until 1977.
PDF of Harney article