Most of Baldwin was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. Its Register listings are the Darby House and the Tillandsia. Below: 2 old photos and papers.
The Baldwin post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, La Teche (1875), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,762156 years
How historic is Baldwin?
B−
More historic than 50% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Baldwin post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Baldwin’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Baldwin is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Baldwin’s overall grade.
Louisiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Louisiana town has 3.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Baldwin’s 15.3 sits above most of its state (72% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Baldwin’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The community was named for John Baldwin, the Ohio educator who founded what would later become Baldwin-Wallace University. In 1867, Baldwin purchased the Darby plantation in Louisiana, a plantation of about 1,700 acres (6.9 km2). His residence there, Darby House, remained in his family until 1937 and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Gilbert Academy and Industrial School was in Baldwin. It became Godman Industrial School and 14 years after closing in 1978 became the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) Sager Brown campus. The Louisiana physician and politician Alvan Lafargue practiced in Baldwin, his wife's hometown, prior to 1915.
The Baldwin post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Baldwin rank for history?
Baldwin is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Baldwin?
Two places: the Darby House (listed 1982) and the Tillandsia (1982).
How old are the homes in Baldwin?
9% of Baldwin’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.8 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 1987.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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