Baird is a city and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Callahan County, Texas Callahan County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,708. Its county seat is Baird. The county was founded in 1858 and later organized in 1877. It is named for James Hughes Callahan, an ...

, United States. Its population was 1,479 at the 2020 census. The city is named after Matthew Baird, the owner and director of the

Texas and Pacific Railway The Texas and Pacific Railway Company (known as the T&P) was created by federal charter in 1871 with the purpose of building a southern transcontinental railroad between Marshall, Texas, and San Diego, California. However its lines never went we ...

. The railway depot is now operated as the visitor center and a transportation museum. Baird is part of the

Abilene, Texas Abilene ( ) is a city in Taylor County, Texas, Taylor and Jones County, Texas, Jones counties, Texas, United States. Its population was 125,182 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene metropolitan ar ...

metropolitan statistical area.

Geography

Baird is located in north-central Callahan County.

Interstate 20 Interstate 20 (I‑20) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I-20 runs beginning at an interchange with I-10 in Reeves County, Texas, and ending at an interchange with I-95 in Florence, South Carolina. B ...

passes through the northern part of the city, leading west to Abilene and east to

Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc. (using the trademark Cisco) is an American multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, s ...

. U.S. Route 283 crosses the eastern side of town, leading north to Albany and south to

Coleman Coleman may refer to: Places Antarctica * Coleman Glacier (Antarctica) * Coleman Peak, Ross Island Canada * Coleman, Alberta * Coleman, Ontario * Coleman, Prince Edward Island United Kingdom * Coleman, Leicester, England United States * C ...

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which , or 2.55%, is covered by water.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, Baird has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

, ''Cfa'' on climate maps.Climate Summary for Baird, Texas
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History

Baird, Texas was named after Matthew Baird, a director of the Texas and Pacific Railway. He was also sole proprietor of the

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railway locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, Eddystone in the early 20th century. The com ...

, the largest locomotive firm in the United States, headquartered in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania. The city was officially founded in 1880. In 1993, the

Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...

designated Baird as the "Antique Capital of West Texas". It has 12

antique An antique () is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely to describe any object that i ...

shops. The former Callahan County Jail, at 100 W. 5th Street, was originally located in nearby Belle Plain, then the county seat. When the county seat moved to Baird, the jail was disassembled brick by brick, and reassembled at its current location. Belle Plain lost population and became a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

. The town has five churches, four gas stations/convenience stores, and a feed store.

Library

The Callahan County Library was started in 1937 by the Baird Wednesday Club. The Pioneer Museum was added in 1940. Both are located on the basement floor of the Callahan County Courthouse. The museum features farm and ranch implements, household items, clothing,

barbed wire Roll of modern agricultural barbed wire Barbed wire, also known as barb wire or bob wire (in the Southern and Southwestern United States), is a type of steel fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the ...

, and documents.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,479 people, 728 households, and 461 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, 1,623 people, 677 households, and 429 families were residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was 619.0 people/sq mi (239.2/km²). The 806 housing units averaged 307.4/sq mi (118.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.51% White, 0.18% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.80% Asian orPacific Islander, 7.09% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 13.43% of the population. Of the 677 households, 28.4% had children under 18 living with them, 49.6% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were not families. About 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.8% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.32, and the average family size was 2.96. In the city, theage distribution was 23.4% under 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $27,446, and for a family was $35,000. Males had a median income of $21,974 versus $16,298 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $13,951. About 12.3% of families and 14.0% 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 ...

, including 18.4% of those under age 18 and 12.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The City of Baird is served by the Baird Independent School District, located at 600 West 7th Street. Baird ISD is classified as a 1A district.

Notable person

* Lou Halsell Rodenberger (1926–2009), Texas author who lived much of her later years southeast of Baird, in the small community of Admiral

References

External links

Baird Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Cities in Texas Cities in Callahan County, Texas County seats in Texas Cities in the Abilene metropolitan area