BlockBefore

Waterloo, Illinois

19 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1910 and the latest in 1991. It stands in Precinct 31. It lies in ZIP code area 62298. The Survey maps it on the Waterloo quadrangle. 11,013 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 719 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Waterloo within Monroe County

On record in Waterloo

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 3 records

Population over time

2 figures

Waterloo grew from 9,811 to 11,013 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
20109,811
202011,013+1,202 (+12%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 19 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

7 since 2008

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 7 fires within 5 miles of Waterloo between 2008 and 2016, burning about 141 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Debris and open burning2
Missing data/not specified/undetermined2
Equipment and vehicle use2
Smoking1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
3 August 2016Smoking15 acresIllinois Division of Forestry Resources15-000018
26 June 2009Equipment and vehicle use25 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesWITTNAVER
26 June 2009Equipment and vehicle use25 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesWITTNAUER
18 March 2008Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesCOATS
15 March 2014Debris and open burning40 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesLYNDON1
30 December 2009Missing data/not specified/undetermined4.0 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesVAL 4
30 December 2008Debris and open burning30 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesN/A

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Monroe County

Mines and quarries near this place

5 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 5 workings within 5 miles of Waterloo: 2 past producers, 2 occurrences, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Stone. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Monroe County PitStonePast Producer
Waterloo PitStonePast Producer
Limestone ProspectStone, Crushed/BrokenOccurrence
Limestone ProspectStone, Crushed/BrokenOccurrence
Quality Stone Quarry & MillStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer

Every working recorded in Monroe County

Storms near this place

60 of 64 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Waterloo in 64 storm reports between 1995 and 2025: 32 thunderstorm wind, 24 hail, 6 tornado, 2 flash flood. The reports record 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 2011Tornado (EF2)Waterloo1 hurtA tornado touched down on the north side of Waterloo, Illinois near the intersection of Leah Drive and James Street. Several homes and businesses sustained varying degrees of damage; from displaced roofing materials to businesses with structural damage. Two large air conditioners were tossed 30 yards from the roof of a business. Several large trees were snapped near the base of the trunk. Four power poles were snapped south of the intersection of North Market Street and Kolmer Avenue. One large garage was also destroyed behind a church with debris tossed southeastward 30 to 40 yards. The tornado skipped eastward and crossed Floraville Road on the north side of Ridge Club Golf Course then traveled down the first fairway. A number of cedar and pine trees were snapped. The tornado then crossed Ridge Road where several homes sustained minor roof damage, with 30 to 40 percent of the shingles removed. The tornado then traveled across the northern part of Konarcik Park. Numerous old growth pine trees were snapped at the base of the trunk. Trees three feet in diameter were common in this area. The tornado caused damage to the siding of one home near the intersection of Konarcik and Kopp Roads before lifting. There was one minor injury at Canterbury Manor Nursing Center due to flying glass when a window broke. The maximum intensity was low end EF2, with a maximum estimated wind speed of 115 mph. The maximum width of the tornado was 80 to 90 yards with a total path length of 3.5 miles.
April 1998Tornado (F0)Waterloo$10,000no account filed
June 1995Thunderstorm WindWaterloo$6,400Large trees and power lines were blown down. A roof and barn were also damaged southeast of Waterloo.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindWaterloo$5,000Thunderstorm winds took the roof off the Waterloo High School Baseball stadium equipment shed and one dugout. Storm spotters reported large tree limbs down. Power lines were also down and a couple of roads were blocked by the trees limbs. County highway department personnel had to remove trees from Tout Hollow Road, LL Road, Beck Road, and Bluff Road.
March 1996Thunderstorm WindWaterloo$1,000no account filed
May 1995Tornado (F1)Waterloo$885A tornado briefly touched down on the western side of town and lifted the roof off a business. In one area where several homes were damaged, a recreational vehicle was picked up and set down in the middle of a destroyed house. Trees and large branches were also downed and large hail was also reported by local law enforcement.
June 1995Thunderstorm WindWaterloo$400Power poles and lines were knocked down.
March 2025Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds caused damage to trees and sheds.
April 2025Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds snapped multiple trees and toppled several at their base.
April 2025Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Broadcast media reported estimated 65 mph thunderstorm wind gusts in Waterloo. They also reported visibility near zero statute miles coinciding with the wind gust.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-A trained spotter reported tree branches down in Waterloo.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down multiple utility poles along Hamacher Street.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several large tree limbs and power lines around town.
August 2020Flash FloodWaterloo-Up to 4 inches of rain fell in a short amount of time causing flash flooding. Several roads were flooded including Maeystown Road and Illinois Routes 156 and 159.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several power lines along South Market Street.
May 2019Tornado (EF0)Waterloo-A weak tornado caused minor structural damage and tree damage in the northern section of Waterloo, IL. The tornado was estimated to only be on the ground for a minute. The tornado was rated EF0 with a path length of 0.34 miles and a max path width of 50 yards. No deaths or injuries were reported.
November 2017Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous tree limbs around town.
April 2016Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several trees around town.
April 2015Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down three large trees. Also, a shed sustained moderate damage from the thunderstorm winds.
December 2015Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several trees on the east side of town.
September 2012Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several large trees across Waterloo.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down a large tree onto power lines in Waterloo near the intersection of 6th Street and Main Street.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several trees on the 400 block of West Mill Street in Waterloo.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several large tree limbs.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several large tree limbs.
October 2010Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several large trees and caused some minor damage at the high school, including a softball field dugout and fencing in the area. Several homes just southeast of the high school sustained minor roof and siding damage. Further east along Illinois Route 156, a large cedar tree was blown over blocking the highway for a time.
December 2008Flash FloodWaterloo-Several inches of rain fell in a short amount of time on frozen ground causing flash flooding. Numerous roads in Waterloo were flooded with between 4 and 5 inches of water on several of those roads.
August 2008Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Thunderstorm winds blew down several power lines and tree limbs. Also, a large tree was blown down onto the roof of a nearby house.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Several large trees and power lines were blown down.
November 2005Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-Amateur radio spotters reported an 18 inch diameter tree down.
July 2004HailWaterloo-Amateur radio spotters reported nickel size hail.
May 2004HailWaterloo-Amateur radio spotters reported 3/4 inch hail just northeast of Waterloo.
July 2004HailWaterloo-Storm spotters reported 3/4 inch hail.
June 2003Tornado (F0)Waterloo-An aerial survey conducted by members of the BAMEX (Bow Echo and Mesoscale Convective Vortex Experiment) revealed a small tornado track northeast of Waterloo. The damage occurred in a rural area and was limited to downed trees. The tornado crossed into St. Clair County west of Paderborn.
April 2000HailWaterloo-Law enforcement personnel reported 1 inch hail near Waterloo.
May 1995HailWaterloo-Reported by the county sheriff's department.
May 2021HailWaterloo-no account filed
February 2017HailWaterloo-no account filed
May 2016HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2014HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2011HailWaterloo-no account filed
December 2010HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2008HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2007HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2007HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2006HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 2006HailWaterloo-no account filed
June 2006HailWaterloo-no account filed
November 2005HailWaterloo-no account filed
May 2002Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed
February 2000HailWaterloo-no account filed
February 1999HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 1999HailWaterloo-no account filed
April 1998Tornado (F0)Waterloo-no account filed
November 1998Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed
June 1998Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed
June 1998Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed
June 1998Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed
May 1996Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed
July 1996Thunderstorm WindWaterloo-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Monroe County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Lemens3.7 miles19
Wartburg4.0 miles19
New Hanover Station4.4 miles20
Foster Pond (historical)4.4 miles19
Burksville4.7 miles19
Burksville Station5.0 miles18
New Hanover5.4 miles20
Fountain Gap6.6 miles28

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on WaterlooAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q535870The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 420634. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.