The Mother Rudd Home, the oldest building in Warren Township, served as a stagecoach stop, inn, tavern, and post office, and after the township was organized in 1850 it became the official town hall where all caucuses and elections were held. The Mother Rudd Barn is believed to have been a stop on the Underground Railroad, where shelter and food were provided to escaped slaves traveling from the South to freedom in the North and Canada. From all indications, a main line of the Underground Railroad ran through Lake County from Illinois across the state line to Wisconsin, with identified stops in Gurnee, Ivanhoe, Milburn, and Waukegan, and oral tradition holds that the Mother Rudd Barn was one of these stations. Escaped slaves often traveled along riverbanks to avoid detection, and the Mother Rudd House and Barn, located less than 100 feet from the Des Plaines River, offered a prime location for such a stop because travelers came to the inn at all hours of the night, making it a good place to hide them. All that remains of the barn is its foundation.