Built in 1854. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018.
“William Burns House is a historic house at 201 N. William Burns, Polo's first medical doctor and one of its most prominent early citizens.”
Wikipedia article Dr. William Burns House, CC BY-SA 4.0.
One of 29 National Register listings published here for Ogle County · listed in 2018 · category: Building · built in 1854.
Sources: the Wikipedia article · the National Register database, National Park Service
An account from the chapter on Buffalo township. The inset identifies its exact source book and publication year.
Farmer ; Sec. 24 ; P. 0. Polo ; son of John and Martha Kauffman ; born in Huntingdon Co., Pa., March 14, 1840 ; in Sept., 1861, he enlisted in Co. H. 87th Pa. Y. I. ; served three years ; wounded and taken prisoner at the battle of Bunker Hill, Va., June 13. 1863; was prisoner 108 days at Belle Isle, Richmond ; when he was paroled he went to Annapolis, and rejoined his regiment at Brandy Station ; was in the battles of the Wilderness, Cold Harbor and all the principal engagements of the Army of the Potomac under General Grant, until July 6, 1864 ; from Petersburg he then went to Baltimore and Frederick City; was at the battle of Monocacy Junction, July 9, 1864; after being stationed at various places, was in the battles under Gen.
The chapter on Buffalo Township in The History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878 names Polo. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.
AI.DRICII TILSON, Druggist and dealer in Paints, Oils, Fancy Goods, etc.. Mason st. near Railroad ; residence, corner Division and Dixon sts.; born in Douglass, Worcester Co., Mass., June 6, 1816 ; came to Elkhorn Grove, Carroll Co., in the Spring of 1839 ; during his residence there, he was for twenty years Postmaster, Supervisor three terms, Township School Treasurer, etc.; came to Polo in 1868; engaged in the drug business ever since he came here ; a portion of the time dealing in leather also ; he was one of the incorporators of the Polo Harvester Co., and is President of the Company now ; Mr. A. married Hepsibah Morgan in 1837 ; she was born in Canton, Hartford Co., Conn.; i they have one child living ; one son, Myron, died at the age of three years ; Mr. and Mrs. A. are Congregationalists.
Passage source: The History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878.
AXDERSOX AROIiD T. Farmer and Stock Raiser ; Polo ; son of George A., of Virginia, and Elizabeth Freeman, of New Jersey ; was born in Crawford Co., Pa., in 1825 ; came to Buffalo Grove in the Spring of 1848 ; commenced farming on forty acres, on Sec. 22 ; at the present time, he has the following real estate : 320 acres on Sec. 27, 160 acres on Sec. 3, 320 acres on Sec. 20, 280 acres on Sec. 26, besides 1,120 acres in Lee Co., 111.; has dealt in stock extensively; commenced the
Passage source: The History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Buffalo Township - 24,245 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 7 workings within 5 miles of Dr. William Burns House: 6 past producers, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Limestone, General. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pine Creek Rock | Limestone, General | Past Producer | ||
| Ed Schnulle Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Graehling Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Reid Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Unnamed Limestone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Limestone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Limestone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Polo, the town this property stands in, in 55 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 35 thunderstorm wind, 15 hail, 2 flash flood, 1 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | $50,000 | Numerous large tree limbs blown down, some on houses. Damage to sheds, signs and siding. |
| July 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | $2,000 | Trees blown down onto power lines. |
| August 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | $1,000 | A four inch diameter tree was snapped at its base. Power lines were blown down. |
| March 2026 | Hail | Polo | - | Most of the hail that fell was one half inch in diameter but the largest hail stones were ping pong ball size. |
| March 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Large tree limbs and branches were reported down in Polo. |
| June 2025 | Heavy Rain | Polo | - | A personal weather station recorded 1.21 in just under an hour in Polo. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | A few 3 to 5 inch diameter tree limbs were downed in Polo. |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Several large tree limbs and branches were reported down across Polo. Wind speed was estimated using radar. |
| July 2022 | Hail | Polo | - | A photo shared on social media showed quarter size hail. |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Several 3 inch diameter tree limbs were blown down in Polo, along with one 20 foot long, 6 inch diameter tree limb. |
| August 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | A 5 inch diameter, 15 foot long tree limb was blown down. Numerous other tree limbs were blown down. |
| August 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | A tree was blown down onto a house. |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Old shed knocked down, with a portion of an old barn damaged and branches downed. Radar estimated time. |
| July 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | A large tree branch was blown down onto a road near Polo. |
| May 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Trees and wires were blown down. |
| July 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Three to four trees were blown down with numerous tree limbs blown down. One soft wood maple tree one foot in diameter had its top twisted off, ten to twelve feet above the ground. |
| August 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Tree limbs 6 to 8 inches in diameter were blown down. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Corn fields were flattened, and 6-inch diameter branches were blown down along with power lines. |
| April 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Trees were blown down just west of Polo. |
| April 2008 | Hail | Polo | - | Nickel size hail was reported along Division Street. |
| July 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | A seven inch diameter tree limb was blown down. Numerous small limbs were also blown down. |
| August 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Tree limbs as large as eight inches in diameter were blown down. |
| July 2007 | Flash Flood | Polo | - | Pine Creek overflowed its banks in White Pines State Park. Polo measured 4.27 inches of rain. |
| July 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Large tree limbs blown down near the entrance of White Pines State Park. |
| March 2007 | Hail | Polo | - | Marble to Nickle size hail reported along Route 26 and US 52. |
| August 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Eight inch diameter tree limbs blown down. |
| July 2007 | Flash Flood | Polo | - | Division and West Coven Streets flooded. Polo measured 4.74 inches and 3 miles south of Oregon measured 5.19 inches. |
| July 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Three to four inch tree limbs blown down. |
| July 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Trees were blown down. |
| August 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Trees blown down near the intersection of Hickory and Penn Roads. |
| September 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Large tree limbs were blown down, one fell on two cars. |
| September 2001 | Flood | Polo | - | 1.25 inches of rain fell in 30 minutes and caused some street flooding and minor flooding in a few basements. |
| June 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | A shed was damaged and tree limbs were blown down. |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | Strong winds downed trees. |
| June 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | The County sheriff reported that trees were blown down. |
| April 2023 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| April 2023 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| May 2020 | Funnel Cloud | Polo | - | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| July 2012 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| May 2011 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| June 2011 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| June 2009 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| March 2005 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| July 2004 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| April 2003 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
| July 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| September 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| April 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| April 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Polo | - | no account filed |
| June 1995 | Hail | Polo | - | no account filed |
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Zenas Aplington House | under 500 feet | 2017 |
 | Polo Independent Order of Odd Fellows Lodge No. 197 | under 500 feet | 2004 |
 | Buffalo Township Public Library | 0.2 miles | 1995 |
 | Bryant H. and Lucie Barber House | 0.2 miles | 1993 |
 | David and Julia Watson House | 0.4 miles | 2017 |
 | John McGrath House | 0.8 miles | 1996 |
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 100002824 in Record Group 79. |
| Wikipedia article | Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA. |
| Ogle County | All 29 listed properties in this county. |
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