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The home's exterior reflects the
Italianate style; the roofs being the only exception.
The roofs are Mansard style and are crested with wrought
iron, common to the Second Empire style. The asymmetrical
facade boasts a second-floor porch on the north side,
and a one-story porch with pillars on the center and south
sides.
James and Anna each had a fair amount of input as to the design of the house. Anna was a painter and enjoyed all of the arts. James had interests in both the architecture and horticulture. The home's interior greatly reflects their personal influence (and affluence). The floor plan mimics closely James's home in Pennsylvania. The home originally consisted of a large central hall with two rooms on each side. A spacious dining room occupied the end of the hall opposite the entryway. The dining room doors contain etched glass panels that may have been designed by Mrs. Millikin. One set of doors bears James's monogram. The other set of doors depicts hanging fruits and vegetables on one side and hanging fowl and game on the other, each were popular motifs of the Victorian age for dining room decorating.
The two front rooms served as parlors. The south parlor led to a spare bedroom used by Anna's mother. She lived with the Millikins for several years before her death. This bedroom became James's study/library after Mrs. Aston's death. The kitchen, which is located behind the north parlor finishes out the first floor of the homestead. Originally, both parlors and the dining room had ornamental fireplaces installed. The main hall had a staircase that led to the upstairs rooms. Anna felt this staircase area was dark, cold, and damp, as there was no source of heat or light. Around 1885, she had the house remodeled, with a fireplace replacing the original staircase. A new staircase to the upstairs contained a huge circular stained-glass bay window. This window is being painstakingly refurbished, piece by piece. Due to the remodeling, the original layout of the upstairs rooms remains unknown. Oddities such as archway in the back of a storage closet suggest that the upstairs has changed as dramatically as the lower level of the home.
