Clermont's construction began in 1880, back when new town was just an empty field. It was to be the estate of a exiled Frenchman, whose family went into exile after the French Revolution. There were many issues along the way, and by 1923 the house was not yet finished. By then the Frenchman (and his son) had died and the grandson (Louis Durocque) was now the owner. By then the family was almost broke, and many rooms had to be rented out as apartments in order to pay off the house. Louis Durocque, who had accumulated a lot of gambling debts, was forced to sell the house in 1932.