Bardwell is a city in Ellis County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sov ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by b ...

. The population was 649 at the 2010 census.

Geography

Bardwell is located at (32.267602, –96.695028), at the junction of

State Highway 34 The following highways are numbered 34: for a list of roads numbered N34 : see list of N34 roads. International * AH34, Asian Highway 34 * European route E34 Australia * Cox Peninsula Road (Northern Territory) * (Sydney) * Maroondah Highway (Vi ...

and Farm to Market Road 984 in southern Ellis County, southeast of

Waxahachie Waxahachie ( ) is the seat of government of Ellis County, Texas, United States. Its population was 41,140 in 2020. Etymology Some sources state that the name means "cow" or "buffalo" in an unspecified Native American language. One possible ...

. Highway 34 leads northeast to

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25, ...

and southwest to Italy. Lake Bardwell is to the east. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the city has a total area of , all of it land.

History

The community was settled in the early 1880s when the town's namesake, John W. Bardwell, built a

cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); ...

one mile south of the present-day location. A school opened in 1892 and a post office was established in 1893. When the

Trinity and Brazos Valley Railway The Trinity and Brazos Valley Railway of Texas came into existence on October 7, 1902, originally chartered to build a railroad from Johnson County to the Beaumont area near the Gulf coast. It took its name from the Trinity and Brazos rivers. ...

was routed through Ellis County in 1907, the gin and community were moved to the nearest stretch of track. The town had its own telephone system and electricity supplied by lines from

in 1914. Bardwell prospered throughout the 1920s as a cotton shipping point with three gins and six grocery stores. The population grew to 650 by 1929, but the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagion ...

and a subsequent drought severely impacted the community. The main road was rerouted to the new State Highway 34 in the early 1940s and most of Bardwell's businesses either closed or moved to sites along the highway. In 1958, Bardwell's school consolidated with nearby Ennis. After dropping to a low of 277 during the 1970s, the population began to grow. By 1990, 387 people lived in Bardwell. That figure had grown to 583 by 2000.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, 583 people, 167 households, and 139 families resided in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPop ...

was 2,093.7 people per square mile (803.9/km²). The 176 housing units averaged 632.1 per square mile (242.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 61.58% White, 17.50% African American, 1.37% Native American, 18.52% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 47.51% of the population. Of the 167 households, 47.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.3% were married couples living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.2% were not families. About 13.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.49 and the average family size was 3.86. In the city, the population was distributed as 37.7% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 17.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $31,250, and for a family was $35,000. Males had a median income of $28,125 versus $16,250 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $10,666. About 26.5% of families and 24.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 26.8% of those under age 18 and 35.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Bardwell is served by the

Ennis Independent School District Ennis Independent School District is a public school district based in Ennis, Texas, United States. In addition to Ennis, the district serves the towns of Alma, Bardwell, and Garrett in southeastern Ellis County. A portion of the district e ...

. The school district had an enrollment of 5,838 for the 2011–2012 school year.

Gallery

File:The First National Bank Building.JPG, The First National Bank, established 1915, is one of two historic buildings left on East Main Street.

References

External links

Ennis Independent School District
{{authority control Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex Cities in Texas Cities in Ellis County, Texas Populated places established in 1892