Walterswil, Bern

Walterswil
Coat of arms
Walterswil Show map of Switzerland Walterswil Show map of Canton of Bern
Location of Walterswil
Coordinates: 47°7′N 7°47′E / 47.117°N 7.783°E / 47.117; 7.783Coordinates: 47°7′N 7°47′E / 47.117°N 7.783°E / 47.117; 7.783
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Bern
District	Oberaargau
Government
• Mayor	Ernst Lanz
Area
• Total	7.91 km2 (3.05 sq mi)
Elevation	658 m (2,159 ft)
Population (Dec 2015)
• Total	524
• Density	66/km2 (170/sq mi)
Postal code	4942
SFOS number	0959
Surrounded by	Affoltern im Emmental, Dürrenroth, Oeschenbach, Rohrbachgraben, Ursenbach, Wynigen
Website	www.walterswil-be.ch SFSO statistics

Walterswil is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the Swiss canton of Bern.

Walterswil is first mentioned in 1139 as Walterswile.

The local Freiherr von Walterswil appear in historic records until the early 14th century. After their extinction, portions of the modern municipality were owned by other local nobles. The village church of Saint Cecilia was first mentioned in 1275. In 1438 Henman von Spiegelberg gave the village, the court and the patronage rights over the village church of Walterswil to the city of Bern in exchange for another property. In the following year, Bern divided Walterswil between several nearby courts. Following the 1798 French invasion, the smaller Walterswil parish became part of the Helvetic Republic district of Unteremmental. After the collapse of the Republic and 1803 Act of Mediation it joined the newly created Trachselwald District. Finally, in 1888-89 it received part of the Hubberg Quarter (Hubbergviertel) from Ursenbach, which expanded the municipality to its modern borders.

Historically the local economy was based on farming with some cottage industry canvas weaving in the 18th and 19th centuries. Today many residents commute to jobs in nearby cities and towns and about 71% of the jobs in the municipality are in agriculture.

Walterswil has an area of 7.91 km² (3.05 sq mi). As of the 2006 survey, a total of 5.86 km² (2.26 sq mi) or 74.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 1.68 km² (0.65 sq mi) or 21.2% is forested. Of rest of the municipality 0.4 km² (0.15 sq mi) or 5.1% is settled (buildings or roads).