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BHistory
History · Vivian

Vivian’s post office opened in 1896, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 59% of U.S. towns · #46 of 161 in Louisiana. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Kansas City Southern Depot. Below: maps from 1923 on and the census since 1910.

1896first post office
1on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Vivian began

When was Vivian founded?

1896

The Vivian post office opened in 1896, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 826 in 19102020 census: 3,073130 years

How historic is Vivian?

B

More historic than 59% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Vivian post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Vivian’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Vivian is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #46 of 161 in Louisiana. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Vivian’s overall grade.
Founding era1896, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194023.8% of homes (±15.7) · typical LA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register1 listing, 3.4 per 10,000 residents · typical LA town 3.8 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 59%
NewerOlder
Louisiana towns of 2,500+ (161)Ahead of 72%

Louisiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Louisiana town has 3.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Vivian’s 3.4 sits near the middle of its state (52% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±15.7 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Vivian’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 Vivian are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 4,225 in 1980; 3,073 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Vivian’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Vivian’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

Vivian, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,500192019401960198020002020Peak: 4,225

Peaked at 4,225 in 1980; 3,073 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Vivian came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Vivian.

Read it all →

Settlement likely began after the construction of the Kansas City Southern Railway through the area in 1898. This caused people to move from their communities on nearby Caddo Lake to be closer to the railroad station. Vivian was incorporated as a town in the same year.

Vivian is locally known for their annual Louisiana Redbud Festival. Originally founded on March 26, 1964, the town claims that it is "one of the longest running festivals in the state of Louisiana".

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Vivian, 1896 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1896Post officeThe Vivian post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1946Born herePhil Robertson is born here
  5. 1948Born hereDan Flores is born here
  6. 1948On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 4,225
By decade

Vivian, decade by decade

Today8 recent
An array of rusted above-ground piston-pumps, or pumpjacks2020An array of rusted above-ground piston-pumps, or pump…An array of rusted above-ground piston-pumps, or pumpjacks2020An array of rusted above-ground piston-pumps, or pump…An array of rusted oilfield truck rigs2020An array of rusted oilfield truck rigsVivian, LA, welcome sign IMG 51792011Vivian, LA, welcome sign IMG 5179James Williamson grave, Vivian, LA IMG 51852011James Williamson grave, Vivian, LA IMG 5185Earl Williamson grave, Vivian, LA IMG 51862011Earl Williamson grave, Vivian, LA IMG 5186Downtown Vivian, LA IMG 51892011Downtown Vivian, LA IMG 5189LAMap-doton-Vivian2004LAMap-doton-Vivian
On the map

Vivian on the map, 1948 to 1986

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

Vivian on the 1948 USGS mapVivian on the 1986 USGS map1948Vivian sheet · 1:62,500

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

Every building

Vivian, building by building, 1923

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 sheet.

Vivian fire insurance map, 1923, sheet 11923Sheet 1 of 4
BrickWoodStone

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

On the National Register

1 historic place in Vivian

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1995
Kansas City Southern Depot
Kansas City Southern Depot
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Bungalow/Craftsman1
Kansas City Southern DepotBungalow/Craftsman

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Vivian

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

See all →
Phil RobertsonAmerican professional hunter, businessman and r… · b. 1946
D
Dan FloresAmerican historian · b. 1948
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Vivian’s post office has been open since 1896.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Brent
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Vivian
New HopeVIivian Cemetery - Old SectionVivian Cemetery New Section - Pine Park

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Vivian’s history

What year was Vivian founded?

The Vivian post office opened in 1896, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Vivian rank for history?

Vivian is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #46 of 161 in Louisiana. 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 Vivian?

One place: the Kansas City Southern Depot (listed 1995).

How old are the homes in Vivian?

24% of Vivian’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±15.7 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana 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 (5), the Library of Congress (3), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.