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History · Bolivar

Bolivar dates to 1825, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Lee-Longsworth House. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1953 on, and the census since 1850.

1825founded
1on the National Register
20%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?

1825

Bolivar dates its founding to 1825 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 1,054 in 18502020 census: 1,036201 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1892.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.

Deep rootsEstablished in 1825: 201 years of Bolivar.
★ What stands out · Timeline

Bolivar, 1825 to 1955

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1825
    FoundingBolivar is established
  3. 1892Post officeThe Bolivar post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1907In the archiveBolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.Va
  6. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1955Post officeThe Bolivar post office closes
The story

How Bolivar came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bolivar.

Read it all →

The town is named for South American revolutionary leader Simón Bolívar. Located in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle, it is part of the northwestern fringes of the Washington metropolitan area.

The Appalachian Trail passes directly through nearby Harpers Ferry, which some consider the psychological midpoint of the trail, although the physical midpoint is further north, in Pennsylvania. Uniquely, the towns of Harpers Ferry and Bolivar partnered with the ATC to be declared a united Appalachian Trail Community.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Bolivar, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s6 items
Bolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.Va1907Bolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.VaBolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.Va1907Bolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.VaBolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.Va1907Bolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.VaFrom the hills of Bolivar, athwart the Potomac to Maryland, the distant "Gap," Camp Hill, and Virginia's hazy heights1908From the hills of Bolivar, athwart the Potomac to Mar…Harpers Ferry : panoramic perspective from Hotel Conner to the Hill-Top House1908Harpers Ferry : panoramic perspective from Hotel Conn…Jefferson's Rock, famed as a favorite viewpoint of the author of our Declaration of Independence1908Jefferson's Rock, famed as a favorite viewpoint of th…
1910s–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
Today6 recent
House in2011House inBolivar, West Virginia2011Bolivar, West VirginiaA house in2011A house inA Church in2011A Church inBolivar WV 2009 reference map2009Bolivar WV 2009 reference mapMapWVMap-doton-Bolivar2004WVMap-doton-Bolivar
On the map

Bolivar on the map, 1953 to 1997

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 1953 USGS mapBolivar on the 1971 USGS mapBolivar on the 1997 USGS map1953Charles Town sheet · 1:24,000

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

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 from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.Va
Retake this viewBolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's Ferry, W.Va, 1907

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
On the National Register

1 historic place in Bolivar

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1985
Lee-Longsworth House
Lee-Longsworth House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Georgian1
Federal1
Lee-Longsworth HouseGeorgian

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Bolivar, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001850190019502000Peak: 1,130

Between 585 and 1,130 people in every census since 1850.

17 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

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 →
Martin R. DelanyUnited States Army officer and physician, aboli… · b. 1812
Thomas WorthingtonGovernor of Ohio · b. 1773
Robert LucasGovernor of Ohio · b. 1781
George William JohnsonAmerican politician · b. 1869
J
James JettAmerican sprinter and American football wide re… · b. 1970
William Lyne WilsonAmerican politician · b. 1843
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

Bolivar had its own post office from 1892 to 1955.

Bolivar
1892–1955
18901960today
Gone or out of use
Bolivar Christian Academyschool

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

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
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBolivar from Bolivar Heights. Harper's …: 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.

Harpers Ferry4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Bolivar’s history

What year was Bolivar founded?

In 1825, according to Wikidata. Bolivar’s post office opened in 1892, and the census of 1850 counted 1,054 people here.

What is on the National Register in Bolivar?

One place: the Lee-Longsworth House (listed 1985).

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 (8), the Library of Congress (4), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.