In 1873 he (John Gage) manufactured brick for the construction of his elegant residence, and next year erected it, personally supervising the laying of every brick. It has hollow brick walls, including the partitions, from cellar floor to garret. Every room, from cellar to garret, has communication with a chimney. In completing the cellar floor thirty barrels of cement were used, with two feet in depth of cobblestones. The walls of the cellars are lined with brick, and the whole edifice contains one hundred and thirty-two thousand five hundred of these cubes. They are of superior quality, and the massive walls of the mansion present a fine appearance. (History of Wabasha County, Together with Biographical Matter, Statistics, Etc., H. H. Hill & Company, Publishers, Chicago, 1884, Page 1245)