701 4th Street Southwest
Rochester, MN, USA

Dr. William J. Mayo House

The Dr. William J. Mayo House was built in 1916. The house showcases a unique combination of Renaissance Revival and English Tudor styles. The 24,000 square foot home contains 47 rooms on 6 floors. Also known as the Mayo Foundation House, it was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1975. It was a home of Dr. William James Mayo (1861–1939), one of seven founders of the Mayo Clinic. It was donated by Dr. Mayo in 1938 to serve as a meeting place for the Mayo Foundation, and today is commonly called the Foundation House.

National Register of Historic Places - Dr. William J. Mayo House

Statement of Significance:

In 1916-1917 Dr. William J. Mayo built this large, two-and-one-half story house with a central tower of five stories. This mansion remained his official residence until 1938, when he gave it to the Mayo Foundation to use in connection with its program of medical education and research primarily "as a meeting place for the exchange of ideas for the good of mankind."

"Few men have been more honored in their lifetimes than the Doctor's Mayo of Rochester, Minnesota, who pioneered in the so-called 'new surgery 1 that began to develop rapidly in the last decade of the 19th century. William J. Mayo was the second son of the pioneer doctor, Dr. William Worrall Mayo. William J. and his brother Charles received training from their father that was both thorough and covered almost every aspect of medical practice. The Mayo brothers went to medical school as a matter of course. "Dr. Will" received his degree from Michigan in 1883 and "Dr. Charlie" from Chicago Medical College in 1888. After graduating from medical school, the two brothers joined their father .in the successful practice of medicine in Rochester.

"Much of the success of the Mayo's was due to the fact that they kept abreast of new advances in* medicine and new developments in surgery. The developments of antiseptic procedures by Joseph Lister revolutionized the medical profession. The Mayos were among the first doctors to take the appropriate protective measures and firmly establish the proper germ-killing procedures."

The "new surgery" developed rapidly, and the Mayo brothers were the first doctors credited with the private clinic concept. Certain elements had been present in the Mayo method of practice from the beginning, but not until 1914 had there appeared "a complete clinic, including laboratories housed under one roof, and independent of any hospital." "While the idea of group practice was not a new one cooperation of a sort among clinicians, surgeons, and laboratory men existed in municipal, state, and local hospitals -- the Mayos were the first to apply it to the private sector and in-doing, so they changed the course of medical history."

In 1919 the Mayos assured the continuation of their work by forming the Mayo Properties Association and transferred to it all the buildings, medical apparatus, and other fixed assets which they had owned as senior partners. In 1932 the brothers resigned from the Clinic's board of governors, ending all semblance of Mayo domination.

Few men were more honored in their lifetimes than the Mayo brothers. Dr. William J. Mayo received thirty-one honorary degrees, served as president of the American Medical Association as well as most of the other major medical fraternities and societies in this country. He along with his brother are best remembered for the organization they created rather than for the surgical skill they possessed. Today the Mayo Clinic is still considered the largest and most successful private practice in the world. It is also the largest graduate training center for medical specialists.

The significance of the Mayo Foundation House lies both in its association with Dr. William J. Mayo and the architectural style which it represents. The Mayo Foundation House is considered an excellent example of the pronounced medieval influence on the style of urban architecture in the early twentieth century.