Liggett Street in Waterford
Waterford is an unincorporated village in the Catoctin Valley of Loudoun County, Virginia located along Catoctin Creek. Waterford is 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Leesburg and 47 miles (76 km) northwest of Washington, D.C.
History
Founding
Waterford was established around 1733 by Amos Janney, a Quaker from Bucks County Pennsylvania. Janney purchased 400 acres 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.[1].
Growth
Amos Janney died in 1747, leaving his estate to his sixteen year-old son, Mahlon. Mahlon replaced the original log mill with a two story structure. The village continued to grow, and in 1780, twelve acres on the south side of Main street were subdivided into 15 lots, upon which shops and homes were built. By the 1790s, the village was known as Waterford, named after the town of Waterford, in Ireland, where some of its founders had once lived before immigrating to the United States. New residents continued to come from Pennsylvania, as Quakers were followed by Presbyterians, Lutherans, Baptists, and Methodists. Waterford was also populated by African-Americans, both free and enslaved[2].
Civil War
By the start of the Civil War, the population of Waterford remained largely Quaker. As pacifists and abolitionists[3], the Quakers remained loyal to the Union throughout the war. Waterford was the scene of a fierce fight between the county's Unionist and Confederate partisan units, the Loudoun Rangers and White's Rebels, respectively.
Waterford Today
The town today is largely residential, although a number of businesses are based in the village, including a map maker[4], real estate agency[5], and the Loudoun Mutual Insurance Company, which has been located in Waterford since 1849[6][7].
The Waterford Historic District is a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The village is notable for its annual homes tour and crafts exhibit, which is held on the first full weekend of October[8].
External links
References
- ^ http://www.waterfordfoundation.org/history/quakers.html
- ^ http://www.waterfordfoundation.org/history/growth.html
- ^ http://cghs.dadeschools.net/slavery/anti-slavery_movement/quakers.htm
- ^ http://www.landtrustva.org/about_maps.asp
- ^ http://www.manta.com/coms2/dnbcompany_dxly4d
- ^ http://www.loudounmutual.com/aboutus_1.cfm
- ^ http://www.zipperpages.com/Loudoun_Mutual_Insurance_Company-of-Waterford_VA/6913844.html
- ^ http://www.waterfordfoundation.org/fair/index.html
