{"nrhp_refnum":"95001236","name":"Buffalo Township Public Library","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"302 W. Mason St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Polo","county":"Ogle County","state":"IL","lat":41.986392554000076,"lon":-89.58061027299999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1995-11-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story Carnegie library with a raised basement at 302 West Mason Street in Polo, Ogle County, Illinois, built in 1903-04 to designs by Patton and Miller of Chicago and constructed by Greig and Baum of Dixon.","why_significant":"The library is locally significant under Criterion A for education, for providing library services to Polo and Buffalo Township residents from 1904 onward. It was built with a $10,000 Carnegie grant and meets the Carnegie Library type defined in the Illinois multiple property documentation. It replaced the township's 1871 library, one of the oldest in Illinois.","narrative":"Built in 1903-04 at 302 West Mason Street in Polo, Illinois, this Carnegie-funded library is a one-story Classical Revival building with a raised basement. Chicago architects Patton and Miller designed it, and Greig and Baum of Dixon built it. Common brick walls rest on a limestone foundation, and white Bedford limestone trims the windows and the entrance, which has engaged columns, a pediment inscribed \"Carnegie\" and a Spanish-influenced brick parapet. Inside, original quarter sawn white oak woodwork, built-in shelving, a large oak circulation desk and a fireplace remain. The library grew from a subscription library organized by Polo citizens in 1871 and became a township free public library in 1891. A $10,000 Carnegie grant helped fund the $15,000 replacement building, which opened on September 29, 1904. It is recognized for its role in education, serving township residents as a source of books, information and a meeting place, and it remains largely as built.","period_of_significance":"1904-1945","architect_builder":"Patton and Miller, Architects; Greig and Baum, Builders","architectural_style":"Classical Revival","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Exterior unchanged from 1903-04 and interior largely original; still used as a library and meeting space.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.653958-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/97/8913/28891397/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/95001236.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/95001236/7c106c66ea-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/95001236/7c106c66ea-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.5","author":"Andy McMurray","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ogle_County_Polo_Il_Buffalo_Library1.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Andy McMurray</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.5</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ogle_County_Polo_Il_Buffalo_Library1.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28891397","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Township_Public_Library","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4985881"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/ogle-county/buffalo-township-public-library-95001236/"}