Vesin
Origin of the name Vesin
The village is recorded in 1223 as « Visins ». The name is said to come from the Latin « vicinus », the neighbour, « vesin » in the patois of the time. In the coat of arms the three roses recall the lords of Estavayer and the falcon the Feguely family.[1][2]
Founding of Vesin
Vesin lies in the Estavayer-le-Lac enclave. The village belongs to the lordship of Cugy and has always been part of the parish of Cugy. People live from livestock, cereals, maize and tobacco. Around 1300 a branch of the d'Estavayer family takes the name of lords of Cugy. Tradition holds that Renaud III gave his son Girard a house at Cugy and land at Vesin, Ménières, Fétigny and Granges. Vesin is now part of the municipality of Cugy (merger of 2005).[1][2]
History of Vesin
1223. Vesin appears under the name « Visins ».[1][2]
1338. People from Payerne burn the village.[1]
1536. Vesin comes under the Fribourg bailiwick of Estavayer.[1]
1576. A plague epidemic ravages Vesin and Cugy.[2]
1584. Jean de Glâne, lord of Cugy, inherits the mayoralties of Cugy, Vesin, Montet and Ménières. After the de Glâne, the lordship passes to the Bonstetten, Feguely, Lanthen-Heid and de Reyff families.[2]
Mid-18th century. The children of Vesin may attend the school in Cugy. The schoolmaster is paid 45 batz, on condition that he teaches the poor for free.[2]
1798-1848. The village belongs to the district of Estavayer.[1]
1836. An inn with a large living quarters is built at the end of the village street.[3]
1890. Vesin has 219 inhabitants. Ferdinand Ansermet is its mayor.[2]
1919. The Syndicat des sélectionneurs de la Broye, which produces seed for bread and fodder cereals, sets up its head office in Vesin. It stays there until the 1960s, under the direction of Marcel Ansermet.[1][2]
1937-1938. A masonry primary school, a cube in regionalist style, is built.[3]
1962. Tobacco is then an important source of income, and Vesin hosts the European tobacco-growing congress.[2]
1964. At the National Exhibition in Lausanne several farmers from Vesin receive a diploma with gold medal for their seed.[2]
1969. A ready-mixed concrete and gravel firm sets up.[1]
2004. On 31 March the small municipality of 250 inhabitants seals its future, and the Grand Council approves its merger with Cugy by a decree of 15 June.[2][4]
2005. On 1 January Vesin becomes part of the municipality of Cugy, whose administrative seat remains in Cugy.[1][2][4]
Population of Vesin
Sources and references: [1][2]
| 1811 | 142 |
| 1850 | 214 |
| 1890 | 219 |
| 1900 | 259 |
| 1950 | 250 |
| 1980 | 175 |
| 2000 | 242 |
Historic sites in Vesin
Former inn. The large living quarters dated 1836 close off the village street, along with Broye farmhouses from the late 18th and early 19th centuries, much altered since.[3]
Bellevue barn. The barn dates from around 1854.[3]
Mändly house. House built in 1905 for Adèle Mändly, née Baudin.[3]
Primary school. The 1937-1938 building is a regionalist masonry cube.[3]
Remains in Vesin
Pot de fer chapel. A chapel stood at the place called « Pot de fer », where a cross still marks the spot.[2]
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Vesin » (Marianne Rolle, version du 13.12.2011)
- Commune de Cugy, « Histoire de Vesin »
- Service des biens culturels du canton de Fribourg, Recensement cantonal des sites construits d'importance régionale et locale (SCRoL), « Vesin », novembre 2025
- État de Fribourg, Recueil systématique (RSF 141.1.2), « Liste chronologique des fusions, divisions et changements de nom des communes »
Other villages near Vesin
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