24/7 Trauma and Biohazard Cleanup in Bolivar, PA

Bolivar is a small borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, sitting on the north bank of the Conemaugh River at the northern edge of Fairfield Township.

The first settlers arrived in Bolivar around 1829 and settled between Tubmill Creek and the Conemaugh River, and most of the men were employed by the Pennsylvania Canal.

Bolivar's name is pronounced to rhyme with "Oliver."

The Pennsylvania Railroad replaced the canal in 1846, and brickyards were built between the Conemaugh River and the railroad, earning Bolivar the nickname "Brick Town."

Scottish immigrant James Glover is credited with starting Bolivar's firebrick industry after discovering the local clay deposits in 1842.

At its peak, Bolivar's No. 4 Brickyard was the largest brickyard in North America, with a capacity of 100,000 paving blocks per day.

Bolivar was incorporated as a borough on November 25, 1863, and its streets were laid out in the checkerboard pattern typical of boroughs of the era.

Bolivar's population peaked at 828 in 1950 during its brickmaking heyday and had declined to 436 by the 2020 census.

The entire borough covers only about 0.2 square miles, and the 2000 census counted 501 residents living in 200 households.

Bolivar students attend the Ligonier Valley School District; the borough once had its own Bolivar High School, whose students moved to the new Laurel Valley High School in 1961.