Bairoa, Caguas, Puerto Rico

Bairoa is a barrio or district in the municipality of Caguas, Puerto Rico. Its population in 2020 was 18,197. There are close to 60 sectors in Bairoa.

Name
The barrio of Bairoa gets its name from the Bairoa River which crosses the area from west to east and flows into the Loíza River. There are numerous theories about the name meaning of Bairoa. The word bairoa is most likely of Taíno origin and it possibly comes from the word baira, which is either the native name for the tree Chrysophyllum cainito, or a native word meaning "forest", "wood" or "tree bark", or from the word paira meaning "bow".

Sectors and demographics
Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions) in turn are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.

The following sectors are in Bairoa: Alto Monte, Altos de San Luis, Antigua Planta de Tratamiento, Antigua Vía, Apartamentos Los Pinos, Arbolada, Bairoa I, Bairoa II, Bairoa La 25, Bairoa Park Bairoa, Bairoa Shopping Center, Barrio Bairoa, Caguas Milenio I, Caguas Milenio II, Caribbean Containers Bairoa, Cementerio Monte Calvario, Chalets de Bairoa, Ciudad Jardín, Ciudad Jardín - La Cima, Colinas de Bairoa, Centro Comercial San Antonio, Diamond Village, El Retiro, Estancias de Bairoa, Estancias de Santa Teresa Bairoa, Estancias del Turabo, Golden Gate I, Golden Gate II, Jardines de Condado Moderno, La Serranía, La Serranía - Lomas de La Serranía, La Serranía - Rincón de La Serranía, Las Carolinas, Las Carolinas - Urbanización Las Carolinas, Los Cajones, Los Curas, Los Reyes, Mansiones de Bairoa, Mirador de Bairoa, Monte Altos de San Luis, Monticelo, Obras Públicas Municipal, Parque Industrial Angora, Parque Industrial Bairoa, Parque Industrial Santa Elvira, Planta de Tratamiento, La 25, Plaza Centro, Santa Juana Apartments, Santa Juana I y II, Santa Juana III, Santa Juana IV, Telefónica, Valle Verde Bairoa, Valley View Park, Villa Blanca Apartments, Bairoa Walmart, and Wind Gate.

History
The area of Bairoa was originally inhabited by the Taíno people. At the time of the Spanish arrival the area was under control of cacique (tribal chief) Caguax, from whom the city of Caguas gets its name. The first European settlement in the area was the Hato de Bairoa, a cattle farm established and developed between the years 1525 and 1600. The first mention of Bairoa as a district of Caguas comes from the colonial municipal budget documents of 1821 as Bairoa Abajo and Bairoa Arriba (modern day Bairoa, Aguas Buenas). During this time the economy of the barrio was primarily the cultivation of sugarcane and minor fruits, and cattle raising.

Bairoa was in Spain's gazetteers until Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became an unincorporated territory of the United States. In 1899, the United States Department of War conducted a census of Puerto Rico finding that the combined population of Borinquen barrio and Bairoa barrio was 3,870. According to the 2010 United States Census the population of Bairoa is of 19,258 residents, and the barrio today is primarily suburban and residential.

Landmarks and places of interest

 * Altos de La Mesa and Altos de San Luis, two mountain ridges and secondary forests home to the Puerto Rican plain pigeon.
 * Bairoa Forest, secondary forest between the Valle Verde and Golden Gates neighborhoods.
 * Bairoa La 25, original section of the historic Carretera Central along the Loíza River.
 * Bairoa Park, baseball field and sports complex.
 * Bairoa Shopping Center, one of the oldest shopping centers in Caguas.
 * El Mariachi, Mexican-Puerto Rican restaurant popular with locals and visitors alike.
 * Monte Calvario Cemetery, crematorium and cemetery.
 * Plaza Centro Mall, former location of Central Santa Juana and a sugarcane refinery.