Chez-le-Bart
Origin of the name Chez-le-Bart
The sources consulted give neither a dated first mention nor an etymology for the name Chez-le-Bart. The « Chez-le- » or « Chez-la- » type, common in the Jura and the canton of Neuchâtel, generally designates the house of a person or family; « Bart » may therefore refer to a surname or nickname (to be cross-checked).
Founding of Chez-le-Bart
Chez-le-Bart was never a municipality or a parish: it is a hamlet on the shore of Lake Neuchâtel that belonged to the former municipality of Gorgier, together with the village of Gorgier on the hillside and scattered farms, Les Prises. It thus shared the history of the lordship of Gorgier, held by the Estavayer family from the mid-13th century and subjected to the counts of Neuchâtel in 1344. No date or founder is known for the hamlet itself; it is said to have developed on the alluvial fan of the Argentine stream below Gorgier (to be cross-checked). The shore was occupied long before the Middle Ages: the Neolithic site of Les Argilliez, in a small bay closed off by cliffs, carried two successive villages of the Cortaillod culture, between 3841 and 3817 BC and then between 3531 and 3528 BC.
History of Chez-le-Bart
3841 to 3817 BCE. First attested Neolithic village on the shore, of classic Cortaillod culture, on the site today called Gorgier, Les Argilliez, in the territory of former Gorgier of which Chez-le-Bart is the lakeside sector. Dating by dendrochronology.
3531 to 3528 BCE. A second occupation, of late Cortaillod culture, settles on the same site.
1252. First known written mention of Gorgier, under the Latin form Corgie.
1299. First mention of Gorgier castle (to be cross-checked).
1340. The village of Gorgier is mentioned; it consists of four streets forming a square.
1344. The lordship of Gorgier, held by the Estavayer family, is subjected to the counts of Neuchâtel.
1433 to 1678. The lordship of Gorgier, with Chez-le-Bart, belongs to the illegitimate branch of the house of Neuchâtel, linked to the neighbouring lordship of Vaumarcus.
1530. Construction date given for the Moulin de la Foule (or de la Foulaz), on the Argentine stream at Chez-le-Bart, used to press fruit and nuts for oil (to be cross-checked).
16th and 17th centuries. Chez-le-Bart preserves a group of houses from this period, including the house of the Vevey-Werly family (to be cross-checked).
1568. Beginning of a major reconstruction of Gorgier castle.
1749-1813. The lordship of Gorgier, with Chez-le-Bart, belongs to the Andrié family.
1813. James-Alexandre de Pourtalès acquires Gorgier castle, home of the Pourtalès-Gorgier family until 1879 (to be cross-checked); the Pourtalès hold the lordship from 1815 until its abolition in 1848.
1859 to 1860. Opening of the Pied du Jura railway line along the lake (Yverdon-Vaumarcus section in 1859, full connection to Bienne completed in 1860), with a stop that would become the Gorgier-Chez-le-Bart station.
1879. Alphonse-Henri Berthoud-Coulon buys the castle of Gorgier.
1897. The Neuchâtel banker Antoine-Auguste Borel (1840-1915), Swiss consul established in California, buys the castle of Gorgier with its estate.
1899. The first public bathing facilities are built on the beach at Chez-le-Bart, on the initiative of Antoine-Auguste Borel, owner of the nearby castle (to be cross-checked).
1907. After a fire destroys the 1899 facilities, the present-day Pavillon des bains is rebuilt at Chez-le-Bart, with an ornamented wooden frame and an appearance inspired by the pagoda style then fashionable.
1909. The Neolithic site of Les Argilliez, lying far out from the shore, is reported for the first time; unlike most lakeside sites in Neuchâtel, it had not been discovered during the first Jura water correction.
1971. Commissioning of the doubling of the railway track between Gorgier-Saint-Aubin and Onnens-Bonvillars.
2000. The restored Pavillon des bains is moved opposite the beach of Chez-le-Bart, where it still stands today.
11 May 2002. Opening to traffic of the A5 motorway section between Vaumarcus and Bevaix, which relieves Chez-le-Bart and the lakeside road of through traffic.
2011. The Les Argilliez site is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list with the prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps.
2015. A complete survey of the piles at Les Argilliez records 4'834 posts over 7'000 m², a far larger extent than estimated in the early 20th century.
1 January 2018. The municipality of Gorgier, with the hamlet of Chez-le-Bart, merges with Bevaix, Fresens, Montalchez, Saint-Aubin-Sauges and Vaumarcus to form the new municipality of La Grande Béroche.
2025. Two retired volunteers undertake the restoration of the Moulin de la Foule at Chez-le-Bart, left abandoned, with the aim of one day making it accessible to the public.
Population of Chez-le-Bart
| 1632 | 509 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 1750 | 445 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 1850 | 866 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 1950 | 1'012 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 1990 | 1'849 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 2000 | 1'775 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 2010 | 1'922 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
| 2017 | 2'021 (former municipality of Gorgier) |
Historic sites in Chez-le-Bart
The Pavillon des bains. Rebuilt in 1907 after the fire that destroyed the first facilities of 1899, this ornamented wooden pavilion, with its separate bathing cabins for men and women and its appearance inspired by the pagoda style, testifies to the development of public baths on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel at the turn of the 20th century. Restored and moved opposite the present-day beach in 2000, it remains accessible to the public today.
The beach and landing stage of Chez-le-Bart. The beach of Chez-le-Bart, one of the popular public beaches on the north shore of Lake Neuchâtel, is served by the Gorgier-Chez-le-Bart landing stage, a stop for the boats of the Société de navigation sur les lacs de Neuchâtel et Morat (LNM), which allows travel to, among other places, Estavayer-le-Lac and Yverdon-les-Bains.
The Gorgier-Chez-le-Bart railway station. Served since the opening of the Pied du Jura line in 1859-1860, this station bears the double name of Gorgier and Chez-le-Bart and underlines the historical link between the central hillside village and its lakeside hamlet.
The old core of the hamlet. Chez-le-Bart preserves a group of 16th- and 17th-century houses, including the house of the Vevey-Werly family, bearing witness to the age of settlement on the lake shore (to be cross-checked).
Remains in Chez-le-Bart
The Neolithic pile-dwelling site of Gorgier, Les Argilliez. This submerged field of piles, in a small bay closed off by cliffs, was only reported in 1909. Dendrochronological dates indicate two successive villages of the Cortaillod culture: classic Cortaillod (3841-3817 BC) and late Cortaillod (3531-3528 BC). In 2015 a complete survey recorded 4'834 posts over an area of 7'000 m² (140 x 50 m). The site has yielded polished stone axes, antler hafts and coarse pottery. It has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 2011 among the prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps; it should not be confused with Port-Conty, in the territory of the neighbouring former municipality of Saint-Aubin-Sauges.
The Moulin de la Foule (or Moulin de la Foulaz). This mill, on the Argentine stream at Chez-le-Bart, was used to press fruit and nuts for oil; its construction is dated to 1530 (to be cross-checked). Long abandoned, it has been restored by volunteers since 2025, with the aim of one day opening it to visitors.
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Gorgier (commune) » (Germain Hausmann)
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Gorgier - Les Argilliez » (Sonia Wüthrich)
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Gorgier (seigneurie) » (Germain Hausmann)
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, article La Grande Béroche
- Wikipédia (français), Gorgier
- Wikipédia (anglais), Gorgier
- Wikipédia (allemand), Gorgier
- Wikipédia (allemand), Chez-le-Bart
- Wikipédia (anglais), La Grande Béroche
- Wikipédia (anglais), Gorgier Castle
- Wikipédia (anglais), Antoine Borel
- Wikipédia (français), Ligne du Pied-du-Jura
- Wikipédia (allemand), Autobahn A5 (Schweiz)
- palafittes.org, fiche du site CH-NE-02 Gorgier, Les Argilliez
- Canton de Neuchâtel, patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO
- Assemblées Villageoises et Association des Sociétés de La Grande Béroche, Pavillon des Bains à Chez-le-Bart
- Canal Alpha, Chez-le-Bart, ils redonnent vie à un moulin du XVIe siècle
- Canal Alpha, La Grande Béroche, 5 ans de vie de six communes
- ASGIP, Gorgier, balade au fil des perles du patrimoine
- CFF, gare de Gorgier-Chez-le-Bart
- Société neuchâteloise de généalogie, bulletin 31, Famille Borel du Mont, Gorgier, Bevaix
- État de Neuchâtel, arrêté du 4 février 2026 homologuant le recensement cantonal de la population au 31 décembre 2025
- La Grande Béroche, site officiel de la commune
Other villages near Chez-le-Bart
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