Lacey Helen Blog's: Rad Renovation: Historic Minnesota Mansion Has an Amazing Rooftop Deck

Monday, 19 October 2020

Rad Renovation: Historic Minnesota Mansion Has an Amazing Rooftop Deck

A piece of Red Wing, MN, history is missing its third floor, but it offers an intriguing instance of addition by subtraction. Built in 1875, the historic mansion is now on the market for $950,000.

Known as the Theodore Sheldon mansion, the nearly 6,000-square-foot residence sits on almost half an acre. Sheldon was an early settler of the city and was active in commerce, transportation, and community issues.

From the house’s rooftop deck and sunroom, you can see for miles.

“It’s a perfect place to get away from it all, and a perfect place to be very private. The views from there are very nice,” says the listing agent, Krista Wolter. “What turned out to be an issue for one owner has turned in to a great space for another.”

The issue she describes is a cash-flow problem that led to the party-friendly rooftop area.

“In the 1960s, the owner did not have the money to redo the mansard roof that was on top of this home, so he removed the entire third floor,” Wolter explains.

“It doesn’t seem like it would be cheaper to remove a whole floor, but that’s what he did. So that left a flat roof on the top, and now you have the incredible rooftop deck.”

In addition to the views and the party vibe up top, the home is full of unusual features.

“When you walk into the home, it is such a wonderful blend of old and new,” says Wolter.

Not only does it retain most of the original elements of the home, but it’s been added to and updated with all the modern amenities you might wish for.

Aerial view of rooftop deck
Erik Mickelsen

Historical photo
Historic Homes of Minnesota

The home’s current owners bought the property in 2015 for $400,000, when it had been divided into a duplex, and decided to restore it and turn it back into a single-family property.

Modern light fixtures, whitewashed wood floors, and fun wallpapers throughout make a perfect combination with the historical finishes, and a wealth of intricate details have been left intact.

“If you look at the windows, the shutters on the inside of the windows, those are all original, and much of the woodwork and the doors are also original,” Wolter says. “It’s amazing trimwork throughout.”

The house has seven fireplaces, some of them in the seven bedrooms. There are also five bathrooms.

“Each fireplace has a different type of stone on it, and that is all original throughout,” Wolter explains.

Given the house’s high ceilings and generously sized rooms, an owner will never feel at all cramped.

“Sometimes with these mansions, they can feel like they’re very partitioned, and you’re going from one small space to another,” Wolter says. “Room sizes here are very expansive, and it seems as though one room just flows naturally flows into the next room.”

In the kitchen, the owners added a pantry and updated its entire look and feel. All the appliances are high-end.

In addition to the rooftop deck, there is more outdoor space at ground level.

“You’ve got several porches, front, back, and side, and those are quite inviting,” Wolter says.

In June 1976, the mansion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also on the registry as a part of the Red Wing Residential Historic District.

It’s in an area of other historic homes close to downtown Red Wing, with several biking trails and the Mississippi River close by. Red Wing is about an hour from Minnesota’s cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

“It’s an easy extension of the Twin Cities,” Wolter says, “if you’re looking to be out a little bit, but yet you could certainly still be commuting if living in this home.”

A carriage house is also part of the sale. It’s nnow rented as a duplex, so it can provide a steady stream of income for the owners of the mansion, Wolter says. Another bonus: The mansion is move-in ready.

“It’s very fresh throughout. It feels like this home is out of a magazine,” she adds. “When you walk through, it just it has an incredible blend of old and new. I think this type of home attracts a variety of buyers.”