Legend Tells How Waterloo Got Its Name

Legend Tells How Waterloo Got Its Name. . , Waterloo was named after the town of Belgium, site of Napoleon's defeat by Wellington, but why was this particular name given to this town? , The town was originally divided into two parts - Bellefontaine at the south, named by the French for the beautiful spring there; and Peterstown at the north, named for Peter Rogers, an early and prominent settler. , The two communities were divided by a creek which can still be seen today. There was said to have been intense rivalry between the two towns. , Legend has it that in 1818 a chap by the name of Charles Carroll, an Irishman, came upon the scene, and to the Peterstownmen and the of the astonishment Bellefontainers, ignored the rivalry and built his house on one side of the creek, his barn on the other, and said "It won't be Bellefontaine, and it won't be Peterstown, but begorra, I'll give ye's both your Waterloo.", It has been Waterloo ever since, and the old rivalry has disappeared. Although some of the old-timers still refer to the north part of town as Peterstown, few citizens even know that the dividing "crick" even exists. , Today, we still speak of Bellefontaine, which has a plaque placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution, and Peterstown, which has the old stage coach stop, Peterstown House.