The accomplishments of the Mayo family in the field of medicine have brought fame to both its members and to Minnesota, for it was Dr. William W. Mayo and his two sons, William J. and Charles H., who founded the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in 1903.
This little house was built by William W. Mayo in 1859. It is intimately associated with the Mayo family's early years in Minnesota, for here on June 29, 1861, the Mayos' first son, William J., was born.
His father had emigrated to the United States from England in 1845. By 1854 the doctor was living with his wife in Indiana. He left the family there when he departed suddenly in search of relief from the effects of malaria, saying to his started wife, "Good-bye, Louise. I'm going to keep on driving until I get well or die."
Dr. Mayo's travels took him to St. Paul, the rude capital of Minnesota Territory, where he settled with his family. In 1859 he moved to Le Sueur, where he built this house with the help of his brother James. In 1863 he again moved, this time to Rochester, where in 1889 he was asked to become the medical director of St. Mary's Hospital, the nucleus of the future Mayo Clinic.
seal of the Natural Resources Fund
seal of The Minnesota Historical Society, Instituted 1849
Erected by the Minnesota Historical Society
1968
Comments 0 comments