Bairoil is in the northeast "corner" of the Great Divide Basin, at the edge of the Green Mountains. Bairoil was founded by a former sheep mogul named Charles Bair. Bair was the first to drill for oil in this area and he formed the Bair Oil Company (hence the town's name) for that purpose. The first post office arrived in 1924 and Bairoil finally became incorporated in 1980. Bairoil's biggest claim to fame, though, is a world hang-gliding record set by Kevin Christopherson in 1989 when he rode an updraft from Bairoil to North Dakota: a total of 287 miles. Today, Bairoil is a small but comfortable town with all the basic amenities, paved streets and even a community recreation center.