Swiss Alp

Swiss Alp is on U.S. Highway 77 eleven miles south of La Grange in southern Fayette County, in the rolling hills of the Blackland Prairies. It was established about 1865 by German Lutheran settlers, who were followed by Wendish families from Serbin in Lee County. In 1867 the settlers formed the Philadelphia Lutheran Church. A post office opened in 1877, and the population grew from thirty-five in 1884 to 100 in 1896, when the town had twelve businesses and a school associated with the church. The population dropped after 1900, and the post office closed in 1906. In 1967, when the population was thirty, three Lutheran churches from nearby towns merged to form the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Swiss Alp. In 1987 the church continued to serve the surrounding area of dairy farms and cattle operations. In 1990 the population was forty-six. The population remained the same in 2000.