The Brunson House, located at 485 Kenney Street and built around 1856, is thought to be the oldest brick residence in St. Paul. Its original owner was Benjamin W. Brunson who was born in Michigan and went with his parents to Wisconsin in 1835. He purchased an interest in the Chippewa Falls Mill in 1844 and three years later came to St. Paul. Once here, he assisted in surveying the first town plat with his brother Ira.
During the Civil War Benjamin served three years in the Eighth Minnesota Infantry Regiment and worked his way up from private to lieutenant. He became a lawyer and was a member of the first and second territorial legislatures.
He bought land on the eastern edge of Trout Brook and laid out what was known as "Brunson's Addition," where he built his own residence for his wife and three children. He was active in a variety of areas, including assisting Harriet Bishop in setting up the first Sunday school in the city. He was also a member of the Masons, a charter member of the I. O. O. F. and an active member of the Old Settlers Association.
According to one contemporary writer, at the age of 62 Brunson was “a quiet and unobtrusive man with decided opinions of his own and quite independent in character. He is not a large man; moves and talks in a moderate manner, and he thinks a good deal more than he talks” and was “bright, cheerful and active.” He died at the age of 73 and is buried in Oakland Cemetery. The Brunson House, located in the Railroad Island neighborhood, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
]]>Benjamin Brunson, a surveyor of Saint Paul in 1847, planned Brunson’s Addition in what is now lower Payne Avenue. The neighborhood had pleasing views of Trout Brook, Phalen Creek and downtown, because no railroads had yet cut through the area. The area is approximately 180 acres in size and is bounded by railroad tracks on the north and west, Swede Hollow Park on the east and East 7th Street on the south.
Railroad Island was one of a few early neighborhoods that developed just outside downtown Saint Paul in the 1850’s. Initially it attracted fairly prosperous residents who liked the views of Trout Brook to the west. As a result, many Victorian houses were built in the area in the late nineteenth century on Burr, Brunson, Minnehaha, Desoto, Mt. Ida, and other streets.
But with the arrival of railroads, with their noisy and smoky engines, many people decided to move to newer areas in the western part of the city. In fact, the encirclement of the neighborhood by several railroads is where it got its name.
As the elite left, the community slowly developed into a blue collar area. Historically, the majority of the housing in Railroad Island was single-family and owner-occupied. Many neighborhood residents worked at the nearby brewery, Whirlpool, 3-M, the railroads and other East Side businesses. When an major influx of Italian immigrants started around 1910, a large number of them came to Railroad Island. Many hailed from the Benevento region of Italy, near Naples.
There were a number of important Italian institutions that developed in the community. St. Ambrose Catholic Church was created to serve the Italian community and was headed up by Msgr Louis Pioletti for several decades. On St. Joseph’s Day the men carried statues through the streets. There were special feast days for St. Anthony, and Mary. In addition, there were numerous restaurants and other speciality shops in lower Payne Avenue.
In recent years, closings and employment cut-backs have taken jobs and, with them, economic and social stability from the neighborhood. Owner-occupied housing slowly converted to rental units which generally has resulted in a lower level of maintenance of the neighborhood's housing. However, there are still many homeowners who savor the historic homes in the area. Railroad is now quite diverse in its population but then, hasn’t it always been?
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