Bardwell, Texas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bardwell, Texas
City
The Masonic Lodge in Bardwell until 2013
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Ellis
Area
• Total	0.30 sq mi (0.79 km2)
• Land	0.30 sq mi (0.79 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation	476 ft (145 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	625
• Density	2,080/sq mi (791/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	75101
Area code(s)	214, 469, 945, 972
FIPS code	48-05612
GNIS feature ID	2409786

Bardwell is a small city located in Ellis County, Texas, in the United States. In 2020, about 625 people lived there. It is a quiet community with a rich history.

Where is Bardwell Located?

Bardwell is in southern Ellis County, Texas. It sits where Texas State Highway 34 and Farm to Market Road 984 meet. The city is about 15 miles (24 km) southeast of Waxahachie.

Highway 34 connects Bardwell to other towns. It goes northeast about 7 miles (11 km) to Ennis. It also goes southwest about 13 miles (21 km) to Italy. A popular spot nearby is Lake Bardwell, which is only 2 miles (3.2 km) to the east.

The city covers a total area of about 0.3 square miles (0.79 square kilometers). All of this area is land.

A Look at Bardwell's History

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

Bardwell started in the early 1880s. A man named John W. Bardwell built a machine called a cotton gin about a mile south of where the city is today. This gin helped process cotton, which was a very important crop back then.

In 1892, a school opened in the community. A year later, in 1893, a post office was set up. This helped the small settlement grow.

A railroad, the Trinity and Brazos Valley Railway, came through Ellis County in 1907. Because of this, the cotton gin and the whole community moved closer to the train tracks. This made it easier to ship cotton and other goods.

By 1914, Bardwell had its own telephone system. It also got electricity from lines connected to Ennis. The town became quite busy in the 1920s. It was a major place for shipping cotton. There were three cotton gins and six grocery stores. The number of people living there grew to 650 by 1929.

However, hard times hit Bardwell. The Great Depression in the 1930s and a long period of dry weather (drought) made things difficult. Many businesses closed. In the early 1940s, the main road was changed to the new State Highway 34. Most of the remaining businesses moved to be closer to this new highway.

In 1958, Bardwell's school joined with the school district in nearby Ennis. The population of Bardwell dropped to its lowest point, 277 people, in the 1970s. But after that, it started to grow again. By 1990, 387 people lived in Bardwell, and by 2000, that number was 583.

People of Bardwell

The census helps us learn about the people living in Bardwell. In 2000, there were 583 people living in the city. These people made up 167 households, and 139 of these were families.

Many households, about 47.9%, had children under 18 living with them. Most households, 62.3%, were married couples. The average household had about 3.49 people.

The population of Bardwell is quite diverse. In 2000, about 61.58% of the people were White. About 17.50% were African American, and 1.37% were Native American. About 18.52% were from other racial backgrounds. Also, 47.51% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino.

The median age in Bardwell was 28 years old. This means half the people were younger than 28 and half were older. About 37.7% of the population was under 18 years old.

Education in Bardwell

Students in Bardwell attend schools that are part of the Ennis Independent School District. This school district serves the city of Bardwell and nearby areas. In the 2011–2012 school year, the district had about 5,838 students enrolled.