Amistad Farm Labor Housing Hereford, Texas

Outside Hereford, in the Texas Panhandle, the old barracks of a World War II prisoner of war camp (photos below) was the only housing available for hundreds of farmworker families who worked in the fields of this rich agricultural community.

Known as the “Labor Camp,” the barracks were a terrible place to live.

Old barracks outside Hereford used to house farmworker families.

Amistad Farm Labor Housing Development

Photos: Tom Hatch

A group of townspeople, organized through the Catholic Church, came together to form the nonprofit Amistad Housing Development Corporation. Amistad built thirty-five apartments (sketch at top, photos below) for the farmworker families. The families pay one-third of their adjusted income for rent.

The Amistad Farm Labor Housing Development has been recognized as one of the finest examples of housing for farm laborers in the United States.

Children of farmworkers play at the Amistad Farm Labor Housing Development.