1006 Summit Ave
St Paul, MN 55105, USA

History and Preservation of the mansion

History
The Minnesota Governors Residence was originally designed and built as a private home for Horace Hills Irvine, a St. Paul lumberman and lawyer. The first building permit was issued in 1910, and construction was completed in 1912. The 1.5 acres of land was purchased for $7,000 and was one of the last desirable lots available at the time on Summit Avenue. Built at an estimated cost of $50,000, the original house was 14,706 square feet in size with 20 rooms, nine fireplaces, nine bedrooms, 10 bathrooms and two porches. It has since been enlarged to slightly over 16,000 square feet.

The stone and brick house was designed by William Channing Whitney, a prominent Minneapolis architect of the time. The architectural style is an interpretation of an English Tudor country manor in the Beaux Arts style. It is interesting to note that a lumber merchant built a brick and stone house, although he did use a variety of decorative woods throughout the interior

In memory of their parents, Horace and Clotilde, the two youngest Irvine daughters, Clotilde and Olivia, donated the home to the State of Minnesota in 1965. The same year, the Minnesota Legislature passed a law accepting the donation and designating the house as the State Ceremonial Building for official public use for state ceremonial functions and as a governor's residence (Laws 1965 c684). The law placed the house and its management under the jurisdiction of the Minnesota Department of Administration. From 1965 until 1980, governors were permitted to propose changes to the house. The Legislature provided renovation funds, and the Department of Administration supervised the improvements. From 1965 to 1967, a committee assisted with furnishing the house, but the governor retained the authority to make changes.

The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in December 1974 and on the St. Paul Historic Sites Register in July 1978. With this designation, any renovation of the exterior of the residence must be reviewed and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office of the Minnesota Historical Society.

First Families residing at the Residence
Governor Tim Walz and First Lady Gwen Walz, 2019 - Present
Governor Mark Dayton, 2011 - 2019
Governor Tim Pawlenty and First Lady Mary Pawlenty, 2003 - 2011
Governor Jesse Ventura and First Lady Terry Ventura, 1999 - 2003
Governor Arne Carlson and First Lady Susan Carlson, 1991 - 1999
Governor Rudy Perpich and First Lady Lola Perpich, 1983 - 1991
Governor Albert Quie and First Lady Gretchen Quie, 1979 - 1983
Governor Rudy Perpich and First Lady Lola Perpich, 1976 - 1979
Governor Wendell Anderson and First Lady Mary Anderson, 1971 - 1976
Governor Harold LeVander and First Lady Iantha LeVander, 1967 - 1971
Governor Karl Rolvaag and First Lady Florence Rolvagg, 1966 - 1967
Famous Visitors
President Vicente Fox, Mexico
President H E Paul Kagame, Rwanda
Kevin McHale, basketball player, manager and coach
John Ashcroft, U.S. Attorney General
Austrian Boys Choir
Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong, Peoples Republic of China
Over 80 ambassadors and spouses during the fall of 2008
Ambassador Petr Kolář, Czech Republic
Sir David Geoffrey Manning, Her Majesty's Ambassador to the United States of America
Ambassador Aziz Mekouar, Morocco
Ambassador Gunnar Lund, Sweden
Ambassador Wegger Christian Strommen, Norway
Ambassador Michael Collins, Ireland
Ambassador Michael Wilson, Canada
Ambassador Meera Shankar, India
Mikhail and Raiza Gorbachev, Soviet Union
King Harald and Queen Sonja, Norway, 1965 and 2012
Crown Prince Haakon, Norway
King Carl Gustav XVI and Queen Silvia, Sweden
Eleanor Roosevelt
Vice President Al Gore and Tipper Gore
Vice President Walter Mondale
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver
Jack Lemmon, actor
Sophia Loren, actor
Ann-Margaret, actor
Jack Nicholson, actor
Walter Matthau, actor
Sean Penn, actor
Robin Wright, actor
Woody Harrelson, actor
Steve Guttenberg, actor
Jimmy Jam, musician and producer
Kevin Garnett, basketball player
Minnesota Lynx, women's professional basketball team
Zygi Wilf, Minnesota Vikings owner
Brock Lesnar, professional wrestler
Steve Cepello (Strong), professional wrestler and artist
Vince Flynn, author
Eric Braeden, actor

Preservation
The need to provide a comprehensive restoration of the Residence has been well documented over the years. In 1983, a master plan for building preservation was developed by architecture, landscape architecture and interior design professionals, and that plan was updated in 1995. Then in 2011, a facilities assessment was conducted which outlined systems requirements that needed to be addressed over the next five years. The assessment confirmed that many of the Residences components and systems were beyond their life expectancy, and that the accessibility, security and sustainability of the building needed to be addressed.

In January of 2012, the Department of Administration initiated predesign efforts for the repair, restoration, and preservation of the Residence, and retained the architecture firm, Miller Dunwiddie, to lead the effort. The predesign examined all interior and exterior components of the Residence and provides a template for future design and construction efforts. The predesign report has aided in ensuring the most critical work is prioritized with the available funding. With limited funds, the Department of Administration has implemented a portion of the report. The Commissioner of Administration has recommended revisiting the report and restoration efforts for the Residence.

Architecture Art Place Politics and Government

Black and white photograph of Paul Granlund`s Man Nam sculpture on the front lawn at the Minnesota Governor`s Residence on Summit Avenue in Saint Paul.

National Register of Historic Places

Excerpt the statement of significance:

In 1965 the state was given the former home of Horace Hills Irvine, influential St. Paul attorney and lumberman at the turn of the century. The presentation was made by Irvine's daughters, Mrs. Olivia Irvine Dodge and Mrs. Clotilde Irvine Moles. Built of stone and red brick in 1911, this English Tudor mansion is Minnesota's first executive residence. This mansion was designed by William Channing Whitney, leading Minneapolis, and St. Paul residential architect from 1895-1915. Previously, visiting dignitaries have always been given lodging in hotels, and state receptions have taken place in public ballrooms, hotel suites, or in the capitol building. Prior to 1965, each of the Governor's families occupied their own home or found temporary quarters in the capital city.

Of the fifty states, forty-one had established residences for their governors before Minnesota did. The first was North Carolina, which provided an official dwelling in 1770, while it was still a British colony. In 1810, Georgia became the second state to have a Governor's mansion. Other states followed slowly, and by 1900 fifteen states owned executive residences. Since then, the number has increased steadily.

Representative William J. O'Brien of St. Paul was instrumental in providing an official dwelling for the Governor of Minnesota. Early in 1965 he heard that this mansion at 1006 Summit Avenue in St. Paul was for sale. At the suggestion of Representative O'Brien, the two Irvine daughters offered the house to the state as a memorial to their parents.

The next step was for the legislature to pass a bill accepting the property, stating how it should be used, and appropriating money to refurbish the house and to maintain it. Representative O'Brien and Donald D. Wozniak were the main authors of the bill presented in the House of Representatives.

The original bill stipulated that the mansion was to be an official residence for the Governor, its use to be considered an addition to his salary. This approach had to be altered, for the state constitution states that any "senator or representative who votes an increase in pay for an office may not run for that office while he is a legislator." The bill was reworded to state that the residence would be for "official public use and ceremonial state functions." The fact that the Governor resides there was called "incidental", for he does so only "because the official use and ceremonial functions that will be carried on in such a building are essential to the proper function of the chief executive..."

When the Minnesota legislature accepted the mansion, they designated it as the State Ceremonial Building to be maintained by the Commissioner of Administration. In 1965 money was set aside by the legislature for major remodeling and structural improvements to take place over a two-year period. The mansion was furnished with articles from a variety of sources. The donors of the house left several large pieces of furniture in the rooms, a committee borrowed furniture for the house from the Minnesota Historical Society, Fine Arts groups, from antique dealers, and friends.


Governor Karl F. Rolvaag and his family were the first official occupants of the residence in 1965. They entertained Crown Prince Harald of Norway as their first guest on October 1, 1965. In February of 1967 Governor Harold Levander and his family moved into the mansion. With an appropriation from the legislature, the mansion was redecorated and refurnished in a formal yet comfortable manner. Governor Wendell R. Anderson and his family now occupy the residence.

The residence is open to the public for scheduled tours. By special appointment, state-wide organizations have made use of the residence.