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DHistory
History · Burr Ridge

Burr Ridge dates to 1956, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 13% of U.S. towns · #703 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Most of Burr Ridge was built recently: 0.7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Its Register listing is the Robert Vial House. Below: maps from 1953 on and the census since 1960.

1956founded
1on the National Register
0.7%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Burr Ridge began

When was Burr Ridge founded?

1956

Burr Ridge dates its founding to 1956 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1960.

First census: 299 in 19602020 census: 11,19270 years

How historic is Burr Ridge?

D

More historic than 13% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Burr Ridge’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Burr Ridge is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #703 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Burr Ridge’s overall grade.
Founding era1956, from Wikidata: founded 1945 or later, an older era than 2% of U.S. townsD−Homes built before 19400.7% of homes (±0.8) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register1 listing, 0.9 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 13%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 8%

Few Illinois towns list much on the Register (a typical Illinois town has 0.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Burr Ridge’s 0.9 sits near the middle of its state (62% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1956.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Burr Ridge’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Burr Ridge are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Burr Ridge’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Burr Ridge’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Burr Ridge came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Burr Ridge.

Read it all →

Burr Ridge's gently rolling hills were carved by glaciers at the end of the last ice age, and most of the village lies on the Valparaiso Moraine. Flagg Creek, a tributary of the Des Plaines River, runs through town.

Joseph Vial erected a log cabin near Wolf and Plainfield roads in 1834. Vial also ran a hotel on the stagecoach line, and the Vial family was actively involved in Lyons Township politics and the creation of the Lyonsville congregational church. The first Democratic convention in Cook County was held in Burr Ridge in 1835. After 1848, farmers shipped their goods to Chicago along the Illinois and Michigan Canal. A small settlement of German farmers also inhabited Flagg Creek by the 1880s.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Burr Ridge, 1953 to 1997

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1956
    FoundingBurr Ridge is established
  4. 1997Born hereMike Smith is born here
By decade

Burr Ridge, decade by decade

Today9 recent
St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church2025St. Mark Coptic Orthodox ChurchI-55 south at County Line Rd overpass - Burr Ridge, IL - August 20242024I-55 south at County Line Rd overpass - Burr Ridge, I…Retro style McDonalds2019Retro style McDonaldsSavoy Club Development2014Savoy Club DevelopmentBurr Ridge, Illinois2014Burr Ridge, IllinoisU.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class John Schleicher, right, assigned to Marine Safety Unit Chicago, takes a questi…2013U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class John Schleic…U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class John Schleicher, background, assigned to Marine Safety Unit Chicago, takes a q…2013U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class John Schleic…Burr Ridge IL 2009 reference map2009Burr Ridge IL 2009 reference mapMapUS-IL-Chicagoland-Burr Ridge2005US-IL-Chicagoland-Burr Ridge
On the map

Burr Ridge on the map, 1953 to 1980

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Burr Ridge. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Burr Ridge on the 1953 USGS mapBurr Ridge on the 1980 USGS map1953Chicago sheet · 1:250,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Burr Ridge.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Burr Ridge

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2007
Robert Vial House
Robert Vial House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Upright-and-wing1
All 1 listings
Robert Vial HouseBuilding · listed 2007

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Burr Ridge, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,000196019802000202011,192

Grew from 299 people in 1960 to 11,192 in 2020, more than tenfold.

7 censuses, 1960–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Burr Ridge’s Wikipedia page.

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
City of Chicago Correction FarmlocaleGower Schoolschool

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Hinsdale8 historic placesB+Willow SpringsIts storyCIndian Head ParkIts storyC−Willowbrook1 historic placeDCountrysideIts storyD

Questions about Burr Ridge’s history

What year was Burr Ridge founded?

In 1956, according to Wikidata. the census of 1960 counted 299 people here.

How does Burr Ridge rank for history?

Burr Ridge is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #703 of 768 in Illinois. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Burr Ridge?

One place: the Robert Vial House (listed 2007).

How old are the homes in Burr Ridge?

0.7% of Burr Ridge’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1990.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (9), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.