The story so far
Waterloo, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Waterloo yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 550 in 2010, 552 in 2020.
–Not graded
History · Waterloo
30% of Waterloo’s homes were built before 1940
Below: maps from 1900 on and the census since 1870.
0on the National Register
30%homes built before 1940
2famous people
What stands out about Waterloo’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Waterloo’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Waterloo’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Burton
McCartney
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BurtonMcCartney
1cemetery inside Waterloo
Sprauge
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From the old history books
What they wrote about Waterloo in 1915
Passages that mention Waterloo, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Waterloo1915Read the page →
Read the text
History of Waterloo 19 The land now comprising the town and village of Waterloo was, prior to 1845, a part of the town of Aztalan. From the best data available the political organization of Waterloo as a town was effected in 1 845 or 1 846, with Abram Vanderpool as its first chairman, and P. M. Brooks its first clerk. J. H.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Waterloo1915Read the page →
Read the text
Berry and John Berry from Saxony, who took up lands on Section 9, later known as the Sheridan farm. Their appearance marked the beginning of the end of the ownership of the town of Waterloo by the sons and daughters of the American Revolution. About the same time, Bernard and Thomas Heil located on The Island on Section 17, and in 1847, John Sheridan located on Section 9. The buying out process was thus begun and has continued until few bearing the names of
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Waterloo, 1855 to 1956
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1855
Born hereEveris A. Hayes is born here - 1871Post officeThe Burton post office opens
- 1896Post officeThe McCartney post office opens
- 20th century
- 1900
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1902Post officeThe Burton post office closes
- 1924Post officeThe McCartney post office closes
- 1956
Born hereTom Hamilton is born here
By decade
Waterloo, decade by decade
2007
2007
2007
2007
2007On the map
Waterloo on the map, 1900 to 1984
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Waterloo. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1900Lancaster sheet · 1:125,000U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Waterloo.
People over time
Waterloo, census by census
Grew from 727 people in 1870 to 3,492 in 2020, 4 times over.
16 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Waterloo’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →2 famous people were born in Waterloo
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Waterloo’s history
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.