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History · Waterford

Waterford dates to 1733, and 90% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them the Waterford Historic District, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district. Below: 8 old photos and papers and maps from 1944 on.

1733founded
1on the National Register
90%homes built before 1940
8old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Waterford’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Waterford began

When was Waterford founded?

1733

Waterford dates its founding to 1733 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1800.

2020 census: 181293 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1800.The full story ↓

What stands out about Waterford’s past

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

Old housesHalf of Waterford’s homes were built before 1938.Older than the countryEstablished in 1733, 43 years before the Declaration of Independence.A National Historic Landmark1 place on the National Register, including Waterford Historic District, a National Historic Landmark.
★ What stands out · The story

How Waterford came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Waterford.

Read it all →

Waterford was established around 1733 by Amos Janney, a Quaker from Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Janney purchased 400 acres (1.6 km2) on the south fork of Catoctin Creek and established a grist mill and saw mill in the area in the 1740s. Due to the success of the mills, the settlement became known as "Janney's Mill." The town grew quickly as a center of commerce for growers of grain.

Chapters18th century19th century20th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Waterford, 1733 to 1970

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1733
    FoundingWaterford is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1800Born hereJohn Hough James is born here
  5. 1800Post officeThe Waterford post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1900In the archiveOld weaving house
  8. 1933In the archiveTown of Waterford (General Views)
  9. 1944On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1970LandmarkWaterford Historic District named a National Historic Landmark
On the National Register

1 historic place in Waterford

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmark
1
Waterford Historic District
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1969
Waterford Historic District
Waterford Historic District★
Districts★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Victorian1
★ Landmark
Waterford Historic DistrictVictorian

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

By decade

Waterford, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1930s7 items
Old weaving house1900Old weaving houseTown of Waterford (General Views)1933Town of Waterford (General Views)Town of Waterford (General Views)1933Town of Waterford (General Views)Town of Waterford (General Views)1933Town of Waterford (General Views)Town of Waterford (General Views)1933Town of Waterford (General Views)Town of Waterford (General Views)1933Town of Waterford (General Views)Waterford Mill, Catoctin Creek at end of Main Street1933Waterford Mill, Catoctin Creek at end of Main Street
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Date unknown1 to date
William and Sarah Nettle HouseDate?William and Sarah Nettle House
Today10 recent
Waterford house VA12018Waterford house VA1Waterford, Virginia2012Waterford, VirginiaWaterford, Virginia - panoramio (1)2012Waterford, Virginia - panoramio (1)Waterford, VA 20197, USA2012Waterford, VA 20197, USAWaterford, VA 20197, USA - panoramio (1)2012Waterford, VA 20197, USA - panoramio (1)Waterford, VA2012Waterford, VAIndependent Loudon Virginia Rangers2012Independent Loudon Virginia RangersChurch - panoramio (131)2012Church - panoramio (131)Waterford, Virginia town center2008Waterford, Virginia town centerWaterford, Virginia - Liggett Street2008Waterford, Virginia - Liggett Street
On the map

Waterford on the map, 1944 to 1984

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

Waterford on the 1944 USGS mapWaterford on the 1952 USGS mapWaterford on the 1970 USGS mapWaterford on the 1984 USGS map1944Waterford sheet · 1:31,680

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Old weaving house
Retake this viewOld weaving house, 1900

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Waterford’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Places that used to be

Places now gone and burying grounds

Waterford’s post office has been open since 1800.

Gone or out of use
John Wesley Methodist Episcopal ChurchchurchWaterford MillparkWaterford Quaker Meeting Housechurch
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Waterford
Fairfax Quaker Meeting HouseWaterford Union of Churches

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

Help out

Finish Waterford’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewOld weaving house: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Waterford’s history

What year was Waterford founded?

In 1733, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Waterford’s post office opened in 1800.

What is on the National Register in Waterford?

One place: the Waterford Historic District (listed 1969).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (17), the Library of Congress (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.