History

The Minnesota Governor’s Residence was originally designed and built as a private home for Horace Hills Irvine, a St. Paul lumberman and lawyer. The first building permit was issued in 1910, and construction
was completed in 1912. The 1.5 acres of land was purchased for $7,000 and was one of the last desirable lots available at the time on Summit Avenue. Built at
an estimated cost of $50,000, the original house was 14,706 square feet in size with 20 rooms, nine fireplaces, nine bedrooms, 10 bathrooms and two porches. It has since been enlarged to slightly over 16,000 square feet.

The stone and brick house was designed by William Channing Whitney, a prominent Minneapolis architect
of the time. The architectural style is an interpretation
of an English Tudor country manor in the Beaux Arts style. It is interesting to note that a lumber merchant built a brick and stone house, although he did use a variety of decorative woods throughout the interior

In memory of their parents, Horace and Clotilde, the
two youngest Irvine daughters, Clotilde and Olivia, donated the home to the State of Minnesota in 1965.
The same year, the Minnesota Legislature passed a
law accepting the donation and designating the house as the "State Ceremonial Building" for official public use for state ceremonial functions and as a governor's residence (Laws 1965 c684). The law placed the house and its management under the jurisdiction of the Minnesota Department of Administration. From 1965 until 1980, governors were permitted to propose changes to the house. The Legislature provided renovation funds, and the Department of Administration supervised the improvements. From 1965 to 1967, a committee assisted with furnishing the house, but the governor retained the authority to make changes.

The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in December 1974 and on the St. Paul Historic Sites Register in July 1978. With this designation, any renovation of the exterior of the residence must be reviewed and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office of the Minnesota Historical Society.

First Families residing at the Residence

Governor Mark Dayton, 2011 - present
Governor Tim Pawlenty and First Lady Mary Pawlenty, 2003 - 2011
Governor Jesse Ventura and First Lady Terry Ventura, 1999 - 2003
Governor Arne Carlson and First Lady Susan Carlson, 1991 - 1999
Governor Rudy Perpich and First Lady Lola Perpich, 1983 - 1991
Governor Albert Quie and First Lady Gretchen Quie, 1979 - 1983
Governor Rudy Perpich and First Lady Lola Perpich, 1976 - 1979
Governor Wendell Anderson and First Lady Mary Anderson, 1971 - 1976
Governor Harold LeVander and First Lady Iantha LeVander, 1967 - 1971
Governor Karl Rolvaag and First Lady Florence Rolvagg, 1966 - 1967

Famous Visitors

President Vicente Fox, Mexico
President H E Paul Kagame, Rwanda
Kevin McHale, basketball player and manager
John Ashcroft, U.S. Attorney General
Austrian Boys Choir
Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong, People’s Republic of China
Over 80 ambassadors and spouses during the fall of 2008
Ambassador Petr Kolář, Czech Republic
Sir David Geoffrey Manning, Her Majesty's Ambassador to the United States of America
Ambassador Aziz Mekouar, Morocco
Ambassador Gunnar Lund, Sweden
Ambassador Wegger Christian Strommen, Norway
Ambassador Michael Collins, Ireland
Ambassador Michael Wilson, Canada
Ambassador Meera Shankar, India
Mikhail and Raiza Gorbachev, Soviet Union
King Harald and Queen Sonja, Norway, 1965 and 2012
Crown Prince Haakon, Norway
King Carl Gustav XVI and Queen Silvia, Sweden
Eleanor Roosevelt
Vice President Al Gore and Tipper Gore
Vice President Walter Mondale
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver
Jack Lemmon, actor
Sophia Loren, actor
Ann-Margaret, actor
Jack Nicholson, actor
Walter Matthau, actor
Sean Penn, actor
Robin Wright, actor
Woody Harrelson, actor
Steve Guttenberg, actor
Jimmy Jam, musician and producer
Kevin Garnett, basketball player
Minnesota Lynx, professional women's basketball team
Zygi Wilf, Minnesota Vikings owner
Brock Lesnar, professional wrestler
Steve Cepello (Strong), professional wrestler and artist
Vince Flynn, author
Eric Braeden, actor