The Bergen post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Warner's Landing (1850) and River Side (1855), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,365170 years
How historic is Bergen?
C+
More historic than 41% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Bergen post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Bergen’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bergen is more historic than 41% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bergen’s overall grade.
Wisconsin towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Wisconsin town has 3.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Bergen’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% 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 (±7.0 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 Bergen’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Bergen had its own post office from 1856 to 1867. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Warner's Landing
1850–1874
River Side
1855–1859
Bergen
1856–1867
Bergen
1874–1887
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Pleasant Valley
Gone or out of use
Grandview SchoolschoolHilltop SchoolschoolMohawk Valley SchoolschoolOak Ridge SchoolschoolRiverside SchoolschoolWarner Landinglocale
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Bergen
RiversideSaint Matthews
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Bergen, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Bergen yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Bergen ( BUR-ghən) is a town in Vernon County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,365 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Pleasant Valley is located in the town.
Its first post office opened in 1856. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 1,364 in 2010, 1,365 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Bergen in 1884
Passages that mention Bergen, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Vernon county, Wisconsin ..1884 · page 167Read the page →
Read the text
On the 23d of November, 1859, the board of supervisors ordered that the south half of township 13, range 7 west, be taken from the town of Bergen and annexed to Wheatland. And further that the north half of congressional township 14, range 1 west, be taken from the town of Bergen and attached to Hamburg.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Vernon County, Wisconsin, together with sketches of its towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history1884 · page 167Read the page →
Read the text
On the 23d of November, 1859, the board of supervisors ordered that the south half of township 13, range 7 west, be taken from the town of Bergen and annexed to Wheatland. And further that the north half of congressional township 14, range 1 west, be taken from the town of Bergen and attached to Hamburg.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Vernon county, Wisconsin ..1884 · page 527Read the page →
Read the text
Genoa was organized in the spring of 1870, a portion of it being taken from the town of Bergen and a part from the town of Wheatland. It is bounded on the north by the towns of Bergen and Harmony, on the east by the towns of Harmony and Sterling, on the south by Wheatland town, and on the west by the Mississippi river. It is seven miles in distance north and
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Vernon County, Wisconsin, together with sketches of its towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history1884 · page 527Read the page →
Read the text
Genoa was organized in the spring of 1S70, a portion of it being taken from the town of Bergen and a part from the town of Wheatland. It is bounded on the nortli by the towns of Bergen and Harmony, on the east by the towns of Harmony and Sterling, on the south by Wheatland town, and on the west by the Mississippi river. It is seven miles in distance north and
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Bergen, 1850 to 1926
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Bergen post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Bergen rank for history?
Bergen is more historic than 41% 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.
How old are the homes in Bergen?
20% of Bergen’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.0 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1975.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
