Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
It is a town of 2,951 residents in Texas. Home to 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
A tough set of grades. Its lowest grade is for walkability. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 88% of U.S. towns. Incomes are weaker too: the median household income is $76K, and just over one in ten residents live below the poverty line. It lags on hazard risk as well: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 84% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Homes run about $316K for a typical one, 3.8 times the Houston metro’s $82K median household income. The overall grade lands at D−, 623rd of 640 in Texas. Set against the rest, it does better than 2% of U.S. towns.
Figures: incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index · home values, Zillow.
Where Bolivar Peninsula beats most towns.
Coastal flooding makes up 24% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
37.1% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, so the town is fuller in summer than its census count suggests.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Bolivar Peninsula is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 3,853 in 2000, 2,769 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1863 and 6 maps from 1931 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Bolivar Peninsula is unincorporated, so Galveston County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Bolivar Peninsula.
Bolivar Peninsula has a longer frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Texas (mostly inland flooding) and has commutes longer than most of Texas.
Its two schools are below. The public schools here belong to High Island ISD. 2 public schools serve Bolivar Peninsula, with 263 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crenshaw El and MiddleLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 131 | C |
| High Island SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 132 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 98% of Texas towns, with expected losses of about $1,435 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Of the losses FEMA expects in Bolivar Peninsula, 31% come from inland flooding and 24% from coastal flooding. The national flood insurance program has paid 3,972 claims locally since 1979. Federal aid has come to Bolivar Peninsula households in 2 declared disasters; the latest was in 2024.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
For adults 18 to 64 in Bolivar Peninsula, the share who have no health insurance is 12%. The share of adults in Bolivar Peninsula who have diabetes is 17%, above both the Texas town median (13%) and the median of U.S. towns (12%). Against the Texas average, Bolivar Peninsula comes out ahead on 10 CDC measures out of 31, and behind on 10.
| Bolivar Peninsula | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 47% | 35% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 80% | 74% | 79% |
| What stands out | Bolivar Peninsula | TX |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 11.9% | 19.1% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.5% | 16.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.6% | 6.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
11 miles of trail wind through 12 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary, at 1,555 acres. Parks and preserves in Bolivar Peninsula: 12, covering 5,491 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Smith Oaks Bird Sanctuary | 1.4 mi | 152 |
| 2. Jocelyn Nungaray National Wildlife Refuge South Unit | 1 mi | 1,512 |
| 3. Louis B. Smith Boy Scout Woods Bird Sanctuary | 0.6 mi | 55 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Anahuac weather station, 21 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 302 days, longer than in 97% of U.S. towns. January nights average 46.4°, milder than in 97% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 89.4°.
Snow is a rarity. The January low here is 46°F. Only one of the 642 Texas towns we compare has a lower typical July afternoon high than Bolivar Peninsula.
| Bolivar Peninsula | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 46°F | 37°F | 22°F |
| July high | 89°F | 95°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 622 working residents takes 52.5 minutes, against 26.7 across Texas. Jobs based here grew from 383 in 2013 to 604.
Bolivar Peninsula’s average trip to work stands at 53 minutes. Most people who work leave Bolivar Peninsula to do it: just 14% work in town. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs here rose by 221, to 604. Half of commuters travel less than 50 miles.
| Bolivar Peninsula | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 53 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 12% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
On the market in Bolivar Peninsula: a median 149 days to sell. 95% of Bolivar Peninsula households are owner-occupiers. Also worth knowing: homes in Bolivar Peninsula sold for 93.2% of their list price on average.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bolivar Peninsula. Close and well known come first.
19 mi Theme parkGalveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier
36 mi LandmarkSan Jacinto Monument
28 mi BeachGalveston Island
17 mi MuseumUSS Cavalla
32 mi MuseumSpace Center Houston
17 mi MuseumUSS StewartGalveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier: Matthew T Rader, CC BY-SA 4.0 · San Jacinto Monument: Tijuana Brass at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Galveston Island: NASA, Public domain · USS Cavalla: USN photo courtesy of http://ussubvetsofwwii.org. Photo i.d. courtesy of Chuck N, Public domain · Space Center Houston: Shujianyang, CC BY 4.0 · USS Stewart: Unknown, Public domain
None within 15 miles of Bolivar Peninsula; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Bolivar Peninsula residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Texas.
2,417 counted in 2010 and 2,769 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
2 places in Bolivar Peninsula on the National Register of Historic Places.
Census-designated place in Texas, United States
Bolivar Peninsula ( BOL-i-vər) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Galveston County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,769 at the 2020 census. The communities of Port Bolivar, Crystal Beach, Caplen, Gilchrist, and High Island are located on Bolivar Peninsula.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Bolivar Peninsula grades D− overall, better than 2% of U.S. towns and #623 of 640 in Texas. It grades C for health and C for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
The typical home is worth about $316,000, 6% above the Texas typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
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