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General Note

The two-story Mediterranean Revival style residence was designed by architect Thomas Reed Martin and constructed about 1927. It was later added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 21, 1997.

Slides identified: 1. Rear (northeast) elevation, view looking southwest, 2. Main (southwest) facade, view looking north, 3. Entrance courtyard, view looking northeast, 4. Pool and patio, overlooking Sarasota Bay, view looking northeast, 5. Rear (northeast) elevation, view looking south, 6. Primary entrance, main (southwest) facade, view looking north.

Biographical Note

William J. Burns was born around 1861 in Baltimore, Maryland and educated in Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Burns performed well as a Secret Service agent and parlayed his reputation into the William J. Burns International Detective Agency. He was appointed Director of the Bureau of Investigation of the Department of Justice (forerunner of the FBI) on August 22, 1921 and served until 1924 when he was asked to resign by Attorney General Harlan Fiske Stone. At the time of his resignation, Burns had been involved in the Teapot Dome Scandal, the secret leasing of naval oil reserve lands to private companies. He retired to Sarasota and published detective and mystery stories based on his long career until he died on April 14, 1932.