Editing Avard, Oklahoma (section)

==History==
The post office was first established in Avard on June 1, 1895 and the town was incorporated in 1904 where the tracks of the [[St. Louis–San Francisco Railway|Frisco]], extending westward from [[Enid, Oklahoma|Enid]], tied into the line of the [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway|Santa Fe]].<ref name = "ghost_towns">{{cite book
  | last = Morris
  | first = John
  | title = Ghost Towns of Oklahoma
  | publisher = University of Oklahoma Press
  | year = 1977
  | location = Norman, Oklahoma
  | pages = 229
  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=fSqmnpHFEF0C
  | isbn = 978-0-8061-1420-0}}
</ref>  The town was named for Isabell Avard Todd, the wife of Robert Todd.  The town was served by the Southern Arkansas Railway (Santa Fe) and [[Arkansas Valley and Western Railway|Arkansas Valley and Western Railroad]] (Frisco).<ref name="ghost_towns"/>

Avard had mercantile establishments, two hotels, a bank, a livestock auction, and an elevator.   A weekly newspaper, the Avard Tribune<ref name="ghost_towns"/> operated from 1904 to 1918.<ref name="newspaper">{{cite web
  | title = About this Newspaper: The Avard tribune
  | work = Chronicling America
  | publisher = Library of Congress
  | url = http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn96093105/
  | accessdate = July 12, 2009}}
</ref>  It was a major cattle shipping point for the area.<ref name="ghost_towns"/>

A total of 250 people lived in the town in 1909.<ref name="ghost_towns"/>

It was an important rail transfer point for freight and passengers from 1910 to 1930.<ref name="ghost_towns"/>

Avard continued to grow until the mid-1930s.<ref name="ghost_towns"/>  Then the town started to decline due to the [[Great Depression|economic depression]], [[dust storms]], farm consolidation, and changing travel habits.<ref name="ghost_towns"/> Additionally, the town was struck by tornadoes in both 1943 and 1944.<ref name="ghost_towns"/>

The post office lasted until November 22, 1963.  As of January 1, 2010, Avard was disincorporated, although it still appears as a Census-Designated Place.<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 2, 2022 |title=Little Avard still making the news |url=https://www.alvareviewcourier.com/story/2022/01/02/local/little-avard-still-making-the-news/75770.html |access-date=November 17, 2024 |website=Alva Review-Courier |publisher=Marione Martin}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=  https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Avard%20CDP,%20Oklahoma   |title=Avard (CDP), Oklahoma |publisher= United States Census Bureau|accessdate=April 20, 2024}}</ref>

Today, only an elevator and church are left in operation.<ref name="ghost_towns"/> There are also a few unused store buildings.<ref name="ghost_towns"/>

But the area still has important rail connections, including the [[BNSF Railway|BNSF Railway’s]] [[Avard Subdivision]] which runs from Avard to [[Tulsa, Oklahoma|Tulsa]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.enidnews.com/oklahoma/news/bnsf-announced-million-capital-program-in-oklahoma/article_912c45eb-3225-5310-b641-242b62122c65.html | title=BNSF announced $110 million 2018 capital program in Oklahoma | first=Ryan | last=Miller | publisher= [[Enid News and Eagle]]| date=21 February 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180222021551/http://www.enidnews.com/oklahoma/news/bnsf-announced-million-capital-program-in-oklahoma/article_912c45eb-3225-5310-b641-242b62122c65.html | archive-date=22 February 2018 | access-date=19 March 2018| url-status=live }}</ref>  It is also the location of the Avard Regional Industrial Rail Park, which is a rail-served industrial park given site-certification by the BNSF to ensure the location is ready for rapid development.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bnsf.com/ship-with-bnsf/rail-development/pdf/bnsf-premier-one-sheet-avard.pdf |title= Avard Regional Industrial Rail Park, Avard, Oklahoma|publisher=BNSF Railway|accessdate=July 2, 2020}}</ref>