| Official Name: | Bolivar, New York |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Motto: | "Land of the Deer and the Derrick" |
| Pushpin Map: | New York#USA |
| Pushpin Label: | Bolivar |
| Pushpin Label Position: | top |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of Bolivar in New York |
| Coordinates: | 42.0667°N -78.1678°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | New York |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Allegany |
| Government Type: | Town Council |
| Leader Title: | Town Supervisor |
| Leader Name: | Ricky Gould (D, R) |
| Leader Title1: | Town Council |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 92.93 |
| Area Land Km2: | 92.90 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.03 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 35.88 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 35.87 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.01 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 2051 |
| Population Density Km2: | 22.48 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 58.21 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Postal Code: | 14715 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 36-003-07201 |
| Pop Est As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Est: | 2030 |
Bolivar is a town in Allegany County, New York, United States. The population was 2,051 at the 2020 census.[2] The town is named after Simón Bolívar.[3]
Bolivar is on the south border of the county and is east of Olean. There is also a village of Bolivar in the town.
As "the heart of the Allegany Oil Field" the Bolivar-Richburg area rose to significance during the oil boom era of the late 1800s. During the brief initial oil boom of the 1880s it was purportedly the wealthiest locale, per capita, in the United States. By the early 1900s the initial boom, with its economic and population impacts, had significantly faded, but secondary oil recovery techniques applied to the oil fields (starting around 1920) drastically rejuvenated the industry in the area.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 92.9sqkm, of which 0.03sqkm, or 0.03%, is water.[4]
The south town line is the border of Pennsylvania.
New York State Route 275 terminates at New York State Route 417 in the village of Bolivar.
Bolivar was served (1881–1947) by the Pittsburg, Shawmut & Northern Railroad (PS&N) and predecessors, (1881–1893) by the Bradford, Eldred & Cuba Railroad System (BE&C), and (1903–1926) by the Olean, Bradford & Salamanca Railway (OB&S) and predecessors. The early PS&N predecessors and the BE&C were 36" narrow-gauge railroads while the PS&N and OB&S were standard-gauge railroads, the latter being electric-powered.
To the south is Potter County, Pennsylvania. The east town line is shared by the town of Alma, and the west town line is shared with the town of Genesee. The town of Wirt is to the north.
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 2,223 people, 844 households, and 602 families residing in the town. The population density was 62sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 5,300 housing units at an average density of 28.1sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town was 98.83% White, 0.36% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.13% of the population.
There were 844 households, out of which 37.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.4% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.6% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.9% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $33,017, and the median income for a family was $38,750. Males had a median income of $30,449 versus $18,889 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,766. About 13.9% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.6% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.