Most of Waterford was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1967 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1807.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Waterford’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Waterford is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Waterford’s overall grade.
Vermont towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Vermont town has 147 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Waterford’s 125 sits near the middle of its state (61% of Vermont towns have fewer) while its 16 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1780.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.4 points).
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’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The town was formed by the Vermont charter on November 8, 1780, and was originally called Littleton, but the name was changed to Waterford in 1797. The change prevented confusion with the much larger town of Littleton, New Hampshire, Waterford's neighbor across the Connecticut River. One source suggests town may have been named after Waterford, Ireland, but most refer to the two usable fords that ran across the Connecticut River in that area.
In 1780, according to Wikidata. Waterford’s post office opened in 1807, and the first U.S. census counted 63 people here in 1790.
How does Waterford rank for history?
Waterford is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns. 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?
Three places: the Lee Farm (listed 1983), the West View Farm (1995) and the Lower Waterford Congregational Church (2019).
How old are the homes in Waterford?
7% of Waterford’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.4 points), against a typical 22% for a Vermont town; the median home was built in 1980.
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 (5), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.
c. 1860
c. 1860
c. 1860
c. 1860
