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History · Lake Buena Vista

Lake Buena Vista dates to 1967

Most of Lake Buena Vista was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2016. Below: maps from 1955 on and the census since 1970.

1967founded
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Carlo Pelagalli · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Lake Buena Vista began

When was Lake Buena Vista founded?

1967

Lake Buena Vista dates its founding to 1967 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1970.

First census: 12 in 19702020 census: 2459 years
Founding year: Wikidata.The full story ↓

What stands out about Lake Buena Vista’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Lake Buena Vista are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1990 and 2010, then more than doubled.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Lake Buena Vista’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lake Buena Vista’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Lake Buena Vista, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,8001980200020201,776 in 1990Low: 10

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1990 and 2010, then more than doubled.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Lake Buena Vista’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Lake Buena Vista came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Lake Buena Vista.

Read it all →

Chapter 67-1965 of the Laws of Florida, incorporating the City of Reedy Creek, was signed into law by Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. on May 12, 1967, the same day he also signed Chapter 67-764 (creating the Reedy Creek Improvement District), also known as the Reedy Creek Improvement Act, and Chapter 67-1104 (incorporating the city of Bay Lake). It was located fully inside the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The city was controlled by The Walt Disney Company and allowed it powers that other area attractions had not had.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Lake Buena Vista, 1955 to 1990

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1955On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1967
    FoundingLake Buena Vista is established
  4. 1990CensusPopulation peaks at 1,776
By decade

Lake Buena Vista, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Mc Donalds - panoramio - kennard2009Mc Donalds - panoramio - kennardEast Buena Vista Dr, Down Town Disney,FL2009East Buena Vista Dr, Down Town Disney,FLLake Buena Vista, Buena Vista Drive2008Lake Buena Vista, Buena Vista DriveLake Buena VIsta, Florida, Hotel Plaza Boulevard2008Lake Buena VIsta, Florida, Hotel Plaza BoulevardCant Make a Pic Work2008Cant Make a Pic WorkFLMap-doton-LakeBuenaVista2004FLMap-doton-LakeBuenaVista
On the map

Lake Buena Vista on the map, 1955 to 1979

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lake Buena Vista. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Lake Buena Vista on the 1955 USGS mapLake Buena Vista on the 1962 USGS mapLake Buena Vista on the 1979 USGS map1955Orlando sheet · 1:250,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Lake Buena Vista.

Famous people

Famous people close to Lake Buena Vista

Nobody well known was born in Lake Buena Vista itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Emma MyersAmerican actress · b. 2002
K
Kathryn NewtonAmerican actress · b. 1997
H
Howie DoroughAmerican singer · b. 1973
Delta BurkeActress · b. 1956
Traylor HowardAmerican actress · b. 1966
Dee Strange-GordonAmerican baseball player · b. 1988
Places that used to be

Old corners

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Buena VistaCity of Lake Buena Vista Trailer Park

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Bay LakeIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Lake Buena Vista’s history

What year was Lake Buena Vista founded?

In 1967, according to Wikidata. the census of 1970 counted 12 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.