The community is near the site of the Battle of Waddams Grove which took place during the Black Hawk War.

Toward the end of the summer of 1832, William Waddams, and his sons Hiram and Nelson, arrived in Stephenson County and founded Waddams Grove following the end of the Black Hawk War.

[2] Waddams moved his family from Jo Daviess County in the spring of 1833 to the new settlement, and built his home there.

[2] The settlement's first U.S. Post Office opened on March 31, 1838, and would continue to function in the village of Waddams Grove until July 28, 1859.

[3] Sada changed its name back to Waddams Grove on January 14, 1876, and the name remains to this day.