Baileyton was settled in 1870 by Robert Bailey, a farmer from Georgia. A post office was established in Baileyton in 1883. The town was incorporated in 1973.[3]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.3 square miles (13.8 km2), of which 5.3 square miles (13.6 km2) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km2), or 1.06%, is water.[5]
As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 684 people, 281 households, and 196 families in the town. The population density was 128.6 inhabitants per square mile (49.7/km2). There were 305 housing units at an average density of 57.4 per square mile (22.2/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 99.56% White, 0.29% Native American and 0.15% Asian.
Of the 281 households 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 27.0% of households were one person and 11.4% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.93.
The age distribution was 26.6% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% 65 or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.8 males.
The median household income was $31,000 and the median family income was $41,563. Males had a median income of $30,083 versus $20,417 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,696. About 10.3% of families and 16.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 22.5% of those age 65 or over.