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Waterford Village Historic DistrictWaterford Village Historic District · Photo: Fanfair · CC BY-SA 3.0
B+History
History · Waterford Township

Waterford Township dates to 1834, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 74% of U.S. towns · #173 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it

Most of Waterford Township was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1971. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 34 buildings. Below: maps from 1907 on.

1834founded
1on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Waterford Township began

When was Waterford Township founded?

1834

Waterford Township dates its founding to 1834 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1835.

2020 census: 70,565192 years

How historic is Waterford Township?

B+

More historic than 74% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1835.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Waterford Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Waterford Township is more historic than 74% of U.S. towns, #173 of 701 in Michigan. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Waterford Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1834, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19406.9% of homes (±0.9) · typical MI town 11.9% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register1 listing, 34 historic buildings, 4.8 per 10,000 residents · typical MI town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 74%
NewerOlder
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 75%

Few Michigan towns list much on the Register (a typical Michigan town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Waterford Township’s 4.8 sits above most of its state (75% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 34 historic buildings outnumber those of 82% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A−. The pre-1940 share (±0.9 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1834.

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 Waterford Township’s past

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

Lost villages5 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Waterford Township, and 4 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Waterford Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Waterford Village Historic District takes in 34 historic buildings.On the map since 19077 editions of the USGS map, 1907 to 1983. Watch Waterford Township change.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Lake Elizabeth
1835–1841
Waterford
1835–today
Waterford Centre
1841–1858
Four Towns
1856–1902
Drayton Plains
1858–today
Clintonville
1898–1903
Hollister
1899–1900
Union Lake
1961–today
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
ClintonvilleDrayton PlainsFour TownsWaterford
Gone or out of use
Clintonville Post Officepost officeFour Towns Post Officepost officeHollister Post Officepost office
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Waterford Township
All SaintsCrescent HillsDrayton PlainsFour TownsWaterford CenterWaterford Village

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Waterford Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Waterford Township’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
On the National Register

1 listing protects 34 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
34
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Waterford Village Historic District
Waterford Village Historic District, built 1818
Districts
Waterford Village Historic DistrictBuilt 1818

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

The story

How Waterford Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Waterford Township.

Read it all →

Lewis Cass, the third governor of Michigan Territory, established the boundaries of Oakland County in 1819. Waterford Township was organized in 1834.

In 1818, Oliver Williams selected land in Oakland County that he purchased for two dollars an acre. Archibald Phillips and Alpheus Williams purchased 161.40 acres (653,200 m2) in what would later become known as Waterford Village.

In 1818, Oliver Williams and his family established the first farm settlement in the county on the banks of Silver Lake.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Waterford Township, 1818 to 1996

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1818BuiltWaterford Village Historic District is built
  3. 1834
    FoundingWaterford Township is established
  4. 1835Post officeThe Lake Elizabeth post office opens
  5. 1835Post officeThe Waterford post office opens
  6. 1841Post officeThe Lake Elizabeth post office closes
  7. 1841Post officeThe Waterford Centre post office opens
  8. 1858Post officeThe Waterford Centre post office closes
  9. 20th century
  10. 1907On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1963Born hereGail Goestenkors is born here
  12. 1972Born hereBrett Reed is born here
  13. 1978Born hereMike York is born here
  14. 1996Born hereDylan Larkin is born here
By decade

Waterford Township, decade by decade

Today14 recent
Sign for what is suggested to be a sophisticated bowling alley2019Sign for what is suggested to be a sophisticated bowl…The smallest of restaurant delivery vehicles2019The smallest of restaurant delivery vehiclesThe eclectic L.A. Cafe's tiny but efficient delivery vehicle2019The eclectic L.A. Cafe's tiny but efficient delivery …Sign for the Ring & Pinion shop2019Sign for the Ring & Pinion shopThe Big Boy restaurant chain's mascot--a classic among restaurant promotional figures--as displayed2019The Big Boy restaurant chain's mascot--a classic amon…The eclectic L.A. Cafe2019The eclectic L.A. CafeRain dampens the wares, at least those outside, at the Dixieland Antique Flea Market2019Rain dampens the wares, at least those outside, at th…Rain dampens the wares, at least those outside, at the Dixieland Antique Flea Market2019Rain dampens the wares, at least those outside, at th…The sign and classic advertising "mascot" for a Big Boy restaurant2019The sign and classic advertising "mascot" for a Big B…An inexplicable figure atop the entrance to an old restaurant2019An inexplicable figure atop the entrance to an old re…[Waterfront houses]2019[Waterfront houses]Leggett 19302019Leggett 1930Leggett Bay Map2019Leggett Bay MapMapWaterford MI Gateway Sign2011Waterford MI Gateway Sign
On the map

Waterford Township on the map, 1907 to 1983

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

Waterford Township on the 1907 USGS mapWaterford Township on the 1936 USGS mapWaterford Township on the 1943 USGS mapWaterford Township on the 1952 USGS mapWaterford Township on the 1968 USGS mapWaterford Township on the 1973 USGS mapWaterford Township on the 1983 USGS map1907Pontiac sheet · 1:62,500

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

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Waterford Township

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Dylan LarkinAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1996
Mike YorkAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1978
Brett ReedAmerican basketball player-coach · b. 1972
Gail GoestenkorsAmerican women's basketball coach · b. 1963
A
Andy ThornAmerican football player · b. 1982
B
Bryce BaringerAmerican football punter · b. 1999
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Lake AngelusIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWest Bloomfield TownshipIts storyC+Independence Township1 historic placeB−Pontiac16 historic placesAWhite Lake TownshipIts storyB−Auburn HillsIts storyC−Orion Township3 historic placesB+Sylvan LakeIts storyB+

Questions about Waterford Township’s history

What year was Waterford Township founded?

In 1834, according to Wikidata. Waterford Township’s post office opened in 1835.

How does Waterford Township rank for history?

Waterford Township is more historic than 74% of U.S. towns, #173 of 701 in Michigan. 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 Waterford Township?

One place: the Waterford Village Historic District (listed 1979).

How old are the homes in Waterford Township?

7% of Waterford Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1971.

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 (3), the Library of Congress (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.