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A+History
History · Vevay

Vevay dates to 1800, and 25% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 95% of U.S. towns. What drives it

5 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 275 buildings. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1840.

1800founded
5on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
10famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Vevay’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Vevay began, and where its name came from

When was Vevay founded?

1800

Vevay dates its founding to 1800 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1840.

First census: 1,200 in 18402020 census: 1,741226 years

How did Vevay get its name?

Vevay was named after the Swiss town of Vevey.

How historic is Vevay?

A+

More historic than 95% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1810. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Vevay’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Vevay is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Vevay’s overall grade.
Founding era1800, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194025.1% of homes (±6.0) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register5 listings, 282 historic buildings, 1,605 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 95%
NewerOlder

Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Vevay’s 1,605 sits above most of its state (100% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 282 historic buildings outnumber those of 95% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.0 points). Two sources give 1800.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Vevay’s past

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

A historic districtThe Vevay Historic District takes in 275 historic buildings.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1886 to 1911, drew every building in Vevay.Deep rootsEstablished in 1800: 226 years of Vevay.Landmarks on the Register5 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

5 listings protect 282 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
282
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
Edward and George Cary Eggleston House
Edward and George Cary Eggleston HouseOld Hoosier TheatreBenjamin Schenck MansionSwitzerland County Courthouse, built 1864Vevay Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Federal1
Renaissance Revival1
Second Empire1
Italianate1
Greek Revival1
Edward and George Cary Eggleston HouseBuilding
Old Hoosier TheatreFederal
Benjamin Schenck MansionSecond Empire
Switzerland County CourthouseGreek Revival · Built 1864
All 5 listings
Vevay Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2019

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Every building

Vevay, building by building, 1886–1911

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.

Vevay fire insurance map, 1886, sheet 11886Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Vevay, 1800 to 1943

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1800
    FoundingVevay is established
  3. 1810Post officeThe Vevay post office opens
  4. 1816Born hereLydia Moss Bradley is born here
  5. 1837Born hereEdward Eggleston is born here
  6. 1864BuiltSwitzerland County Courthouse is built
  7. 1895Born hereKen Maynard is born here
  8. 1897Born hereKermit Maynard is born here
  9. 20th century
  10. 1933In the archiveGENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Courthouse Vicinity
  11. 1943On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story

How Vevay came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Vevay.

Read it all →

The first settlers who arrived in 1802 were Swiss immigrants intending on cultivating grapes and producing wine. It was named after the Swiss town of Vevey. The town was platted in 1813. When Switzerland County was formed in 1814, Vevay was made the county seat. The Indiana town was spelled differently from the Swiss one in a failed attempt to have other Hoosiers pronounce the name the way the Swiss one was pronounced.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Vevay, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s5 items
GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Courthouse Vicinity1933GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Cour…GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Courthouse Vicinity1933GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Cour…HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY PHOTOGRAPHER UNKNOWN, Date Unknown NORTH ELEVATION - Ferry House, Ohio River Vicinit…1933HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY PHOTOGRAPHER UNKNO…HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY PHOTOGRAPHER UNKNOWN- Date Unknown WEST ELEVATION - Ferry House, Ohio River Vicinity…1933HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY PHOTOGRAPHER UNKNO…HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY WILSON B. PARKER, PHOTOGRAPHER MARCH, 1934 SOUTH ELEVATION ON RIVER FRONT - Ferry Ho…1933HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY WILSON B. PARKER, …
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today13 recent
Ferry Street2019Ferry StreetFerry Street2019Ferry StreetFerry Street2019Ferry StreetFerry Street2019Ferry StreetEdelweiss Floral Sign2019Edelweiss Floral SignCourthouse Square2019Courthouse SquareCourthouse Square2019Courthouse SquareCommunity Foundation of Switzerland County Sign2019Community Foundation of Switzerland County SignCommunity Art Center of Switzerland County2019Community Art Center of Switzerland CountyCommunity Art Center of Switzerland County2019Community Art Center of Switzerland CountyCommunity Art Center of Switzerland County2019Community Art Center of Switzerland CountyCommunity Art Center of Switzerland County2019Community Art Center of Switzerland CountyDégustation des vins suisses2013Dégustation des vins suisses
On the map

Vevay on the map, 1943 to 1980

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

Vevay on the 1943 USGS mapVevay on the 1980 USGS map1943Vevay South sheet · 1:24,000

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Courthouse Vicinity
Retake this viewGENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Privy (six-sided), Courthouse Vicinity, 1933

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Vevay’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Vevay, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0001850190019502000Peak: 1,884

Between 1,175 and 1,884 people in every census since 1840.

17 censuses, 1840–2020.

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

Famous people

10 famous people were born in Vevay

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Ken MaynardAmerican actor and stunt performer · b. 1895
Kermit MaynardActor, stunt performer · b. 1897
Lydia Moss BradleyAmerican philanthropist; founded Bradley Univer… · b. 1816
Edward EgglestonNovelist, historian, clergyman · b. 1837
Ebenezer DumontUnion Army General · b. 1814
L
Lucien ShawChief Justice of California · b. 1845
Help out

Finish Vevay’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewGENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Privy (si…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Jefferson Township5 historic placesA+Craig Township3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Vevay’s history

What year was Vevay founded?

In 1800, according to Wikidata. Vevay’s post office opened in 1810, and the census of 1840 counted 1,200 people here.

How does Vevay rank for history?

Vevay is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns. 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 Vevay?

5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Edward and George Cary Eggleston House (listed 1973, the first), and 1 historic district, the Vevay Historic District, with 275 contributing buildings. 282 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Vevay?

25% of Vevay’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.0 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1971.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (18), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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.