Dr. William W. Mayo and his sons, William J. and Charles H., founded the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in 1903, bringing fame in medicine to the family and to Minnesota. William W. Mayo built this small house in 1859, and it is closely tied to the family's early years in Minnesota. William J., the first Mayo son, was born here on June 29, 1861. His father had emigrated from England to the United States in 1845 and by 1854 was living with his wife in Indiana. Seeking relief from malaria, he suddenly left his family there and traveled to St. Paul, then the rough capital of Minnesota Territory, where the family settled. In 1859 he moved to Le Sueur and built this house with the help of his brother James. In 1863 he moved again to Rochester, where in 1889 he was asked to become the medical director of St. Mary's Hospital, which became the nucleus of the future Mayo Clinic.