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History · Bolivar

Bolivar’s post office opened in 1829, and 45% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1920 on, and the census since 1860.

1829first post office
0on the National Register
45%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Bolivar’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Bolivar began

When was Bolivar founded?

1829

The Bolivar post office opened in 1829, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 40 in 18602020 census: 435197 years
Founding year: the first Bolivar post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Bolivar’s past

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

Boom and bustPeaked at 828 in 1950; 435 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Bolivar’s homes were built before 1944.On the map since 19206 editions of the USGS map, 1920 to 1993. Watch Bolivar change.Deep rootsA post office since 1829: 197 years of Bolivar.
★ What stands out · People over time

Bolivar, census by census

0200400600800190019502000Peak: 828

Peaked at 828 in 1950; 435 people lived here in 2020.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

The story

How Bolivar came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bolivar.

Read it all →

The first settlers arrived in Bolivar about the year 1829 and settled between Tubmill Creek and the Conemaugh River. Most of the men were employed by the Pennsylvania Canal. The canal was located on the south side of the Conemaugh River. Some of the locks still may be seen west of town.

Several small brickyards were started in the area, producing a red brick. Some of the houses on Second Street were constructed of these brick. They are still well-preserved today after exposure to the elements for over a century.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

On the map

Bolivar on the map, 1920 to 1993

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

Bolivar on the 1920 USGS mapBolivar on the 1944 USGS mapBolivar on the 1964 USGS mapBolivar on the 1973 USGS mapBolivar on the 1981 USGS mapBolivar on the 1993 USGS map1920New Florence 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 Bolivar.

Timeline

Bolivar, 1800 to 1950

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1800In the archiveP.R.R. Passenger and Freight Depot
  3. 1829Post officeThe Bolivar post office opens
  4. 1857In the archiveMap of Bolivar and Lockport, Pennsylvania, from 1857 Westmoreland County Map by William J…
  5. 20th century
  6. 1904In the archiveBolivar Public School - 1904
  7. 1920On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1923In the archiveBolivar PA United Presby PHS101
  9. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 828
By decade

Bolivar, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1800s to the 1920s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1800s1 item
P.R.R. Passenger and Freight Depot1800P.R.R. Passenger and Freight DepotDocument
1850s1 item
Map of Bolivar and Lockport, Pennsylvania, from 1857 Westmoreland County Map by William J Barker1857Map of Bolivar and Lockport, Pennsylvania, from 1857 …Map
1900s–1920s4 items
Bolivar Public School - 19041904Bolivar Public School - 1904Reese Hammond Fire Brick Co, Plant No.2 Bolivar, PA 19071907Reese Hammond Fire Brick Co, Plant No.2 Bolivar, PA 1…Reese Hammond Fire Brick Co, Plant No.2 Bolivar, PA 19071907Reese Hammond Fire Brick Co, Plant No.2 Bolivar, PA 1…BookBolivar PA United Presby PHS1011923Bolivar PA United Presby PHS101
1930s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Bolivar Public School - 1904
Retake this viewBolivar Public School - 1904, 1904

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Bolivar’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Bolivar

Nobody well known was born in Bolivar itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Julian CunninghamRecipient of the Purple Heart medal · b. 1893
C
Chas FaganAmerican artist · b. 1966
John Ambrose WattersonCatholic bishop · b. 1844
R
Richard King MellonUnited States general · b. 1899
C. C. MillerAmerican beekeeper · b. 1831
Dave L. ReedAmerican politician · b. 1978
Help out

Finish Bolivar’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBolivar Public School - 1904: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Fairfield Township1 historic placeBRobinsonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWest Wheatfield Township1 historic placeA−

Questions about Bolivar’s history

What year was Bolivar founded?

The Bolivar post office opened in 1829, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (6), Wikipedia, 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.