At the time of European contact, the area around what is now Vian was inhabited and controlled, but not settled, by the Osage, who used it as hunting ground.

After the Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway (later the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway and eventually the Missouri Pacific Railroad) laid tracks through the town in 1888, it became an important shipping point for cotton, with an estimated 2,500-3,000 bales shipped annually by 1901.

When Oklahoma achieved statehood in 1907, Vian became part of the new state as the Cherokee Nation was all but dissolved.

Today, the town lies within the jurisdiction of the modern-day Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

Vian was also home to the Douglass High School, which served the region's African-American students.

Today, Vian's economy is based largely around tourism and services, owing to its location along Interstate 40 and its proximity to Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge, Robert S. Kerr Reservoir and Tenkiller Ferry Lake.

[7] According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.8 square miles (2.1 km2), all land.