Justus Cornelius Ramsey was born in Hummelstown, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania and learned the printer's trade.

He was first employed as a surveyor for the Pennsylvania Railroad, then came to Saint Paul in 1849 where he engaged in the grocery business and in real estate.

The land was subdivided in 1850, and Justus Ramsey kept the title to the lot where this two-room house was built; it is believed that he initially lived in the home.

One of the earliest occupants of the Justus Ramsey House was Robert A. Smith, who arrived in St. Paul in 1853 to serve as a secretary to his brother-in-law, Territorial Governor Willis A. Gorman.

George worked as a porter for the Pullman Company, headquartered in Chicago, while Maria raised the couple’s sole surviving child—three others had died.

Hattie and her daughter both worked as maids, Charles as a construction worker, and John Hall as a butcher for Armour Packing Co.10 At other times the house supported the one-story wood-framed retail shop that was built in front in about 1915 —as when in 1919, Lizzie Battles operated the latter as a hairdresser and millinery shop while residing in the stone house.

In the decades between, the city directories list numerous other residents, most apparently unrelated and having a variety of occupations such as waiter, domestic servant, janitor, rail car cleaner, dishwasher, hairdresser and laborer.

In addition to George Perkins, boarders Lee Barber, James Thomas, and Charles Alexander also worked for the Pullman Company.

At its peak, Saint Paul’s Union Depot served more than 280 trains and 20,000 passengers daily, and was a point of entry and major employer of Black job-seekers.

Although most porters were confined to menial roles, their combined efforts ultimately formed the nation’s first Black labor union ever to sign a collective bargaining agreement, thereby securing improved working conditions and a degree of upward mobility.

In September 2022, Sharif reported that the north wall of the stone house had collapsed and he filed for a demolition permit from the City of Saint Paul.

A restraining order, sought by representatives of Historic Saint Paul, halted the demolition long enough to make plans to dismantle and store the stone house until further preservation efforts could be solidified.