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History · Bowersville

Bowersville’s post office opened in 1847, and 51% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1916 on and the census since 1870.

1847first post office
0on the National Register
51%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain
Quick answers

How Bowersville began

When was Bowersville founded?

1847

The Bowersville post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1848.

First census: 193 in 18702020 census: 261179 years
Founding year: the first Bowersville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1848.The full story ↓

What stands out about Bowersville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Bowersville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost half of its people between 1870 and 1880, then grew 3-fold.Old housesHalf of Bowersville’s homes were built before 1938.On the map since 19164 editions of the USGS map, 1916 to 1974. Watch Bowersville change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bowersville’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Bowersville’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Bowersville, census by census

010020030040018801900192019401960198020002020193 in 1870Low: 84

Lost half of its people between 1870 and 1880, then grew 3-fold.

15 censuses, 1870–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Bowersville’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Bowersville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bowersville.

Read it all →

Bowersville was laid out in 1848, and named for Peter Bowermaster, a first settler. A post office called Bowersville has been in operation since 1847.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bowersville, 1847 to 1916

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1847Post officeThe Bowersville post office opens
  3. 1898Born hereNorman Vincent Peale is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1900CensusPopulation peaks at 370
  6. 1916On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Bowersville, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Maysville south of Chillicothe2016Maysville south of ChillicotheMaysville north of Xenia2016Maysville north of XeniaBowersville Church of Christ2016Bowersville Church of ChristMap of Greene County Ohio Highlighting Bowersville Village2015Map of Greene County Ohio Highlighting Bowersville Vi…MapOHMap-doton-Bowersville2004OHMap-doton-Bowersville
On the map

Bowersville on the map, 1916 to 1974

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Bowersville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Bowersville on the 1916 USGS mapBowersville on the 1944 USGS mapBowersville on the 1961 USGS mapBowersville on the 1974 USGS map1916Octa sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Bowersville.

Questions about Bowersville’s history

What year was Bowersville founded?

The Bowersville post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1848.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.