Kirby is a small suburb just northeast of San Antonio. According to the 2000 census, Kirby had a population of 8,673 which is a far cry from its humble beginnings as a railroad outpost in the 1800s.
It is a full-service city with a mayor, city hall and city council overseeing the development and future of the area, which is both residential and agricultural in nature.
Most of Kirby is single-family detached homes. They average three bedrooms in size, though two and four bedroom houses are not uncommon. The average house price in the city is $72,500 which is nearly $30,000 below the state average, but more than $15,000 higher than just five years earlier.
The prices of houses in Kirby are expected to continue to climb as the demand for housing in suburbs continues to swell.
Kirby residents send their children to the schools of the Judson Independent School District. As the fourth-largest district in Bexar County, Judson has many schools. The specific ones that Kirby children attend are Hopkins Elementary, Kirby Middle School and Karen Wagner HS.
The history of Kirby goes back to 1877, when the railroad that passed through town was just about the only thing around. As nearby Converse began to grow, so did Kirby, setting the ground for a mutual relationship that is still intact today.
By 1900, the population of the newly-minted town was only 100. It consisted of a cotton gin, a blacksmith shop and a post office that eventually closed down in deferment to the one in Converse (though they now have their own once again).
The population went up and down but eventually the city began to thrive after it was incorporated in 1965. In modern-day Kirby, the city is now broken up into three distinct areas which will be discussed in detail in the next section.
The City Charter was adopted in 1988. For more information about it, visit kirbytx.org.
Neighborhoods of Kirby:
Astronaut Area: This is most southern part of Kirby and is so named because the names of the major streets are of famous astronauts throughout history. It is still being populated, mostly by younger single people or new couples that have few or no children and wish to live at a slower, quieter pace than San Antonio provides.Kirby Manor: The area known as Kirby Manor is a mixed bag in terms of who populated it. A little bit of the younger crowd moving to the suburbs for the first time and a little bit of old-school Kirby residents, Kirby manor is the safest area in the city. It generally has the lowest crime rates due to the fact that it is located near the police station.
Old Town: The first true residences of Kirby when the population began to gel were built in Old Town, right around the 1930s. The houses reflect the history and architecture of that time. The city hall, fire department and many other government buildings are also situated in this area.