Welcome to Waterloo ...
The city of Waterloo is located in Black Hawk County<1> and is the County Seat for Black Hawk County.
While we don't have a date for the founding of Waterloo, you might consider that their post office opened in 1851.
When the people of Waterloo refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Waterlooan<2>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Waterloo has a population of 67,401 people<3> (see below for details).
Waterloo is 880 feet [268 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: Waterloo lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Waterloo is within the (319) area code.
The ZIP codes for Waterloo: 50701-50704, 50706, 50799<5>
Websites for Waterloo ...
Chamber of Commerce: www.waterloochamber.org/
Junior League: www.jlwcf.org/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Waterloo had an population of 67,401 people. This is a decrease of 1.47% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 1.96% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Waterloo had a population of 68,406 people (or 52.18% of the total population of Black Hawk County). This makes Waterloo the county's most populous community.
The population of Waterloo represents 2.25% of the total population of Iowa (which has 3,046,355 people), making it the state's 5th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 68,406 people, the population of Waterloo has remained roughly the same as the 2000 Census (which had a count of 68,747 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Waterloo.
Communities Also Named Waterloo ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 58 communities that are also named Waterloo - they are located in Alabama, Arkansas, British Columbia, California, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana (3), Kansas (3), Kentucky (2), Louisiana, Maryland (3), Michigan, Missouri (2), Montana, Nebraska (2), New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Ohio (6), Oklahoma, Ontario (3), Oregon, Pennsylvania (3), Quebec, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas (2), Virginia (5), Washington (2), West Virginia and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Waterloo.
Communities near Waterloo ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Waterloo.
- Cedar Falls
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Falls
- Cedar Falls is located in Black Hawk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 40,231 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cedar Falls <6>
- Waverly
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverly
- Waverly is located in Bremer County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,298 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waverly <6>
- Jesup
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jesup have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jesup
- Jesup is located in Black Hawk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,711 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jesup <6>
- Hudson
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
- Hudson is located in Black Hawk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,473 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <6>
- La Porte City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Porte City
- La Porte City is located in Black Hawk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,230 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for La Porte City <6>
- Denver
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Denver have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denver
- Denver is located in Bremer County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,879 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Denver <6>
- Reinbeck
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reinbeck have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reinbeck
- Reinbeck is located in Grundy County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,613 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reinbeck <6>
- Shell Rock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shell Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Rock
- Shell Rock is located in Butler County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,268 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shell Rock <6>
- Dike
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dike
- Dike is located in Grundy County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,267 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dike <6>
- Fairbank
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairbank have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairbank
- Fairbank is located in Buchanan County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,132 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fairbank <6>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Waterloo. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Waterloo.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Waterloo. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Waterloo.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Waterloo. Our list includes 26 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Waterloo.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Waterloo ...
Looking for more information about Waterloo? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Waterloo, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Waterloo.
Adding Waterloo to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Waterloo in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Waterloo was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>
From that list, the Waterloo post office opened in 1851.
We also found Waterloo in the book titled Iowa State Gazetteer (1865).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Waterloo.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Waterloo. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Black Hawk County: www.co.black-hawk.ia.us/
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Iowa's counties, including Black Hawk, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Waterloo refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a city's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Waterloo may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Waterloo. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Waterloo - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Waterloo). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Waterloo or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). Our list of ZIP Codes for Waterloo includes: 50701, 50702, 50703, 50706 & 50799. |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <8> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |