Vienna dates to 1826, and 6 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns · #43 of 263 in Georgia. What drives it
Most of Vienna was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. 6 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 182 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1907 on, and the census since 1890.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1824.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Vienna’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Vienna is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #43 of 263 in Georgia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Vienna’s overall grade.
Georgia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Georgia town has 10.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Vienna’s 666 sits above most of its state (92% of Georgia towns have fewer) while its 192 historic buildings outnumber those of 93% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.1 points). Two sources give 1826.
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Vienna’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Vienna was founded in 1826 as the seat of Dooly County as Berrien. Its name was later changed to Drayton and in 1836 it became the county seat. Renamed in 1841, Vienna was incorporated as a town in 1854 and as a city in 1901.
On October 4, 2026, a mass shooting broke out during a homecoming block party in Vienna, the county seat, leaving two people dead and 36 others injured. The attack ranks among the deadliest mass-casualty incidents ever recorded in the county.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Vienna.
Every building
Vienna, building by building, 1907–1912
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds
Vienna’s post office has been open since 1842. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Berrien
1824–1837
Vienna
1842–today
Ebenezer
1878–1889
18201920today
Gone or out of use
Dooly County Farmlocale
1cemetery inside Vienna
Vienna City
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Vienna’s history
What year was Vienna founded?
In 1826, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Vienna’s post office opened in 1824, and the census of 1890 counted 536 people here.
How does Vienna rank for history?
Vienna is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #43 of 263 in Georgia. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Vienna?
6 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Stovall-George-Woodward House (listed 1979, the first), and 1 historic district, the Vienna Historic District, with 182 contributing buildings. 192 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Vienna?
5% of Vienna’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.1 points), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 1981.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (9), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
2015
2015
2014
2014
2014
2014
2014
2005
![Florida [Sarasota County (part) - Washington County] -- Georgia [Appling County - Effingham County (part)]](https://images.townratings.com/story/2828/0235c178aff5024ef55d-l.jpg)
