In the 1890s, members of Missoula’s genteel middle class had a problem. While they welcomed the business opportunities brought by the Northern Pacific Railroad, they feared the “unsavory” characters and “seedy” nightlife that accompanied the town’s growth. Their solution: the establishment of Missoula’s first suburb, separated from the raw downtown by the river. After construction of the Milwaukee railroad in 1908, the Southside’s character changed from an elite enclave to a mixed-income suburb, but it remained primarily residential. Many Southside homes, including this one, were originally built as investments. Carpenter E. P. Wohlschlager, who owned several lots on S. Sixth West, owned and perhaps built this two-story residence before 1912. Adding interest to the front façade is a bay window and full-length porch, tucked beneath the roofline. Victor Skinner, a traveling salesman for the Missoula Mercantile Company, rented the house with his wife, Eliza, from 1913 to 1932. In 1920, they lived here with their grown son, Major, a meter reader; Major’s wife, Gladys; and Gladys’s widowed sister, a store clerk.
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