Nicholas Carriger built the property after traveling west with his family as a settler of California. A member of the United States Army, Carriager was welcomed to the area by Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo. Vallejo and Carriger would remain lifelong friends. Carriager chose his estate property based on the scenery and the good drainage of the area. He purchased the property, 1,000 acres, from Vallejo. It was on this land that Carriger was reportedly the first American to grow wine grapes in Sonoma Valley. Cattle, purchased from Vallejo, also grazed the property. After an absence to participate in the gold rush, Carriger returned after great success finding gold, to complete the main house in 1850, which was eventually expanded in 1875. The 1875 expansion included a cornerstone, which was believed to have personal items related to the Carriger's hidden within it, however the items have never been discovered. The Carriger's lived on the property until their deaths.