Waterloo is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

and primary county seat of Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 5,171 at the 2010 census and is now the most populated village in Seneca County. The village is named after Waterloo,

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, where

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

was defeated. It is the primary

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Seneca County, with the other being

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

as part of a two-shire system established in 1822.Seneca County, New York - ''The County Seat Story''
, Retrieved May 27, 2015.Office of the Seneca County Historian, ''Written History of Seneca County, New York'' -- Unit Three: Establishment of Seneca County & Townships, Chapter 3: History of the Towns of Seneca County
, Retrieved May 27, 2015. Most of the county administrative offices are located in the village.Seneca County, New York Departments
Retrieved May 27, 2015. Therefore, many political sources only list Waterloo as the county seat. The Village of Waterloo is mostly in the Town of Waterloo, but the part south of the Cayuga-Seneca Canal of the village is in the Town of Fayette and a small area in the southeast of the village is in Town of Seneca Falls. Waterloo is east of

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

and is located in between the two main Finger Lakes, Seneca Lake and

Cayuga Lake Cayuga Lake (,,) is the longest of central New York's glacial Finger Lakes, and is the second largest in surface area (marginally smaller than Seneca Lake) and second largest in volume. It is just under long. Its average width is , and it is ...

History

The area was within the realm of the

Cayuga nation The Cayuga Nation of New York is a federally recognized tribe of Cayuga people, based in New York, United States. Other organized tribes with Cayuga members are the federally recognized Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma and the Canadian-recognized ...

, one of several bands to form the Iroquois League. The current site of the village was the location of the former Cayuga village "Skoiyase" (or Skoi-Yase), meaning "flowing water", which was established around 1500. They were visited by Jesuit missionaries in the 17th Century. After the

Sullivan Expedition The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Genocide) was a United States military campaign during the American Revolutionary War, lasting from June to October 1779 ...

of 1779 destroyed Skoiyase, many natives left the area. The land then became part of the

Central New York Military Tract The Military Tract of Central New York, also called the New Military Tract, consisted of nearly of bounty land set aside in Central New York to compensate New York's soldiers after their participation in the Revolutionary War. Establishment T ...

, reserved for veterans. The first new settler, Jabez Gorham, arrived on the site of the village around 1795. The early village was known as "New Hudson". It was also known as "Scoys", based on the name of the former Indian village. Because the original county seat in

was deemed too close to the south county line after land was lost from Seneca County, Waterloo became the county seat in 1819. A similar fate befell Waterloo, when much of the north of Seneca County was lost, leaving the village close to the northern county line. The outcome was that both villages were made joint county seats, even though some of the lost towns were later returned to the county. Seneca County remains a two-shire county, although nearly all government activity now occurs in Waterloo. In honor of the two-shire history, the County Board of Supervisors will at least once a year hold a meeting in

at the buildings locally called the " Three Bears". Planning for the Women's Rights Convention in 1848 in Seneca Falls took place in Waterloo. The Village of Waterloo was incorporated in 1824 and again in 1866, the same year it celebrated the first

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

. Waterloo was officially designated as the birthplace of

in 1966 by President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

. The Memorial Day Museum is in the village. However, in 2014, Bellware and Gardiner challenged this designation in ''The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America''. They uncovered evidence that the origin story is a hoax including information ignored by the Centennial Committee backing the proclamation. This includes a report in a New York newspaper that predates by several years any of the sources used by the committee. It describes, in detail, Waterloo's first Memorial Day and places it in 1868. They also note other inconsistencies between the historical record and the story compiled by the Centennial Committee and the lack of discussion or debate in Congress prior to the resolution recognizing Waterloo as the birthplace of the holiday.

Geography

Waterloo is located at (42.903697, -76.859517). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the village has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.6 km²), of which, 2.1 square miles (5.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (3.24%) is water. The Seneca River/ Cayuga-Seneca Canal pass through the village, linking the area to the Erie Canal system. US Route 20, conjoined with New York State Route 5, intersects

New York State Route 96 New York State Route 96 (NY 96) is a northwest–southeast state highway in the Finger Lakes region of New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an interchange with NY 17 (Future I-86) in the Southe ...

in the village. The largest active landfill in New York State, Seneca Meadows, is northeast of Waterloo in the town of Seneca Falls.

National Register of Historic Places listings in Waterloo

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 5,171 people, 2,039 households, and 1,323 families residing in the village. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 2,462.4 people per square mile (957.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.6%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 1.1%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.0% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.2% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.6% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

or Latino of any race were 2.2% of the population. There were 2,039 households, out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.88. In the village, the population was spread out, with 24.5% under the age of 20, 6.1% from 20 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.2 males. The median income for a household in the village was $48,214, and the median income for a family was $65,709. Males had a median income of $43,393 versus $27,328 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the village was $23,777. About 5.5% of families and 10.6% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 11.3% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

Housing

There were 2,164 housing units at an average density of 1,030.5 per square mile (400.7/km²). 5.8% of housing units were vacant. There were 2,039 occupied housing units in the village. 1,424 were owner-occupied units (69.8%), while 615 were renter-occupied (30.2%). The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% of total units. The rental unit vacancy rate was 7.5%.

Notable people

Tom Coughlin Thomas Richard Coughlin ( ; born August 31, 1946) is a former American football coach and executive. He was the head coach for the New York Giants from 2004 to 2015. He led the Giants to victory in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI, both time ...

, two time NFL Super Bowl Champion New York Giants' coach was born in Waterloo in 1946. * George Bradshaw Kelly, U.S. Representative for

New York's 38th congressional district New York's 38th congressional district was a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in New York. It was created in 1913 as a result of the 1910 U.S. Census and eliminated in 1983 as a result of the redistricting c ...

, from 1937 to 1939. *

Mike McLaughlin Michael McLaughlin (born October 6, 1956) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. Nicknamed Magic Shoes, McLaughlin was a perennial fan favorite, winning the Most Popular Driver award in 1997. He also scored several wins and t ...

, former NASCAR driver * Charles E. Stuart, U.S. Representative and Senator from

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. * Kevin Sylvester - radio host on WGR for the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

References

External links

Village of Waterloo

Waterloo Library & Historical Society

Waterloo Volunteer Fire Department
{{authority control Waterloo, New York Villages in New York (state) County seats in New York (state) 1824 establishments in New York (state) Villages in Seneca County, New York Populated places established in 1824