Yvorne

Origin of the name Yvorne

The name is recorded in 1025-1030 as « Evurna ». It very probably derives from the Latin female personal name Eburna and would mean « estate of Eburna » (to be cross-checked). In Vaud patois the municipality is called « Èvouêrna ».

Founding of Yvorne

None of the sources consulted names a founder. The area was settled long before the first written records: a Bronze Age necropolis, a Roman road in the Rhône plain, two milestones and early medieval graves have been found here. From the 12th century the abbey of Saint-Maurice held property and rights at Yvorne, in connection with the house at Ollon founded by Abbot Rodolphe (1153-1168). The municipality comprises the village of Yvorne and the hamlets of Versvey, Vers-Morey and Vers-Monthey.

History of Yvorne

Bronze Age. A necropolis bears witness to early occupation.

47 AD. Date of one of the two Roman milestones recorded at Yvorne; the other dates from the Constantinian period.

1025-1030. First written mention of the name, as « Evurna ».

12th century. The abbey of Saint-Maurice holds property and rights at Yvorne, in connection with the house at Ollon founded by Abbot Rodolphe (1153-1168).

1313. There are 29 hearths at Yvorne and 8 at Vers-Monthey.

1475. Part of the Savoyard Chablais, Yvorne is attached by Bern to the government of Aigle.

1573. The Maison Blanche is built.

1584. A landslide destroys a large part of the houses; a vineyard is later planted on the debris, called L'Ovaille in patois.

1607-1608. The destroyed houses are rebuilt further east.

1609. Antoine d'Erlach rebuilds the Maison Blanche, summer residence of the governors of Aigle.

1756. Vincent Doret builds a marble saw at the Truchefardel quarry.

1798. Yvorne passes to the Aigle district.

1828. Yvorne ceases to depend on Aigle.

1833-1845. Yvorne is made a parish; the church dates from 1838. From 1862 the parish also includes Corbeyrier and, until 1936, Roche.

1909. A new road links Yvorne with Aigle.

1921. The marble quarry closes.

1981. The A9 motorway and the Relais du Chablais open.

Population of Yvorne

Population of Yvorne

1313	29 hearths (households) in Yvorne and 8 in Vers-Monthey
1764	464
1798	542
1850	744
1900	872
1950	772
2000	962
2025	1'119

Historic sites in Yvorne

Maison Blanche. Built in 1573 and rebuilt in 1609 by Antoine d'Erlach, it served as the summer residence of the Bernese governors of Aigle, then passed to the Sinner family.

Reformed church. Built from 1835 to 1838 by the architect Jean Gunthert.

Parsonage. Built in 1837 by the Lausanne architect Henri Perregaux.

School. Built in 1871 by the architect François Jaquerod.

L'Ovaille vineyard. Vineyard planted on the debris of 1584, which gave it its name in patois.

Remains in Yvorne

Bronze Age necropolis. Necropolis bearing witness to prehistoric occupation of the area.

Roman road and milestones. A Roman road crossed the Rhône plain; two milestones are recorded at Yvorne, one from 47 AD, the other from the Constantinian period.

Early medieval graves. Early medieval burials discovered in the municipal area.

Truchefardel marble quarry. At the place called Truchefardel or La Coche, a grey, red and yellow jasper marble was quarried from the 17th century, then by the Doret marble masons in the 18th and 19th centuries. Exported as far as Bern, Geneva and Lyon, it adorns among other things the columns of the doorway of the town hall on the Palud in Lausanne (1674). Worked from 1905 to 1921 by the Société des carrières d'Arvel, the quarry closed in 1921.

Sources

• Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Yvorne »
• Wikipédia, « Yvorne »
• Statistique Vaud, « Population résidante permanente au 31 décembre 2025 »

Other villages near Yvorne

• Aigle (VD)
• Corbeyrier (VD)
• Roche (VD)
• Leysin (VD)
• Saint-Triphon (VD)