Around Rochester Minnesota

This stunning building, nestled on a hilltop overlooking the city, has a fascinating past that is sure to captivate visitors from around the world . Assisi Heights was built in 1955 by the Sisters of Saint Francis, the same group of nuns who assisted in the founding of St. Mary's Hospital and the Mayo Clinic. The building was designed as a convent for the nuns, but it quickly became much more than that. Over the years, Assisi Heights served as a retreat center, a meeting place for community organizations, and a cultural hub for the city of Rochester. But Assisi Heights' history goes back even further than its construction in the 1950s. The site on which it stands was originally owned by Dr. William J. Mayo, one of the founders of the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Mayo had a home on the property, which he named "Oxbow," and it was there that he and his family spent many happy summers. When the Sisters of Saint Francis purchased the property in the 1940s, they kept Dr. Mayo's ho...

Photo: Sisters of Saint Francis Assisi Heights The Assisi Heights Convent, the place rumored that Hugh Hefner of (Playboy Magazine) once submitted a bid to buy it in the early 1970s. A Short tale form a local Rochester cab driver... "I was with a passenger and he had with him a tour book of Rochester, Minnesota. he mentioned to me that he wanted to tour the city and enjoy some of Rochester's more historic places. Now when you come to Rochester Minnesota, if you ask the locals "what's there to do in Rochester?". Most people will start laughing and their minds will begin to draw a blank. The same thing happened to me, the customer asked me that very question. He said, "never mind don't worry I have a tour book of places I want to see". So we went to the famous Mayowood Mansion, Silver Lake, and a few other local area sights. Then last we finally arrived at Assisi Heights. I was awestruck, I couldn't believe all this time I had something so interes...