Harpers Ferry & Bolivar

Harpers Ferry is located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers where Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia meet. This junction of two rivers made it a natural site for commerce. Bolivar (rhymes with “Oliver”) is just uphill from Harpers Ferry and is surrounded by the Harpers Ferry National Historic Park. The town’s history and its present-day activities have become interwoven with the more famous Harpers Ferry, WV. Thomas Jefferson called views from Harpers Ferry "perhaps one of the most stupendous scenes in nature," and “worth a voyage across the Atlantic.”

Harpers Ferry is located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers where Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia meet. This junction of two rivers made it a natural site for commerce. Bolivar is just uphill from Harpers Ferry, and the two towns are surrounded by Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. Thomas Jefferson called views from Harpers Ferry "perhaps one of the most stupendous scenes in nature," and “worth the voyage across the Atlantic.”

In 1747, Robert Harper purchased land and established the right to operate the ferry, already in operation. Later, Harpers Ferry became a transportation hub in the 1830s, with the intersection of the C&O Canal, the B&O Railroad, and the Winchester & Potomac Railroad. The second U.S. Armory and Arsenal were built in Harpers Ferry in 1799. The Armory would go on to produce over 600,000 muskets, rifles, and pistols before its destruction at the outset of the Civil War. The termination of the C&O Canal Company in 1924 and a series of floods in the 1930s ended industrial growth in Harpers Ferry.

Harpers Ferry is best known for John Brown’s raid. In 1859, Brown and 21 men, including five African American men, raided the Federal Armory in an attempt to start a slave revolt. Brown captured several buildings but failed to incite a general rebellion. However, the raid and Brown’s subsequent hanging became flashpoints leading to Civil War. That war was disastrous for Harpers Ferry and Bolivar, and control of the towns passed back and forth between the two armies eight times, largely due to the B&O Railroad’s importance in the war.

With the founding of Storer College in 1867, Harpers Ferry became a center for African American education. In 1906, W.E.B. Du Bois led a three-day meeting for the Niagara Movement at the Storer campus to advocate for civil rights for African Americans. In 1944, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park was established. Today, Harpers Ferry and Bolivar are home to more than 100 19th-century Armory worker houses, many of which have been restored and are now private residences.

Harpers Ferry is unique as the intersection of the C&O Canal, the Appalachian Trail, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, and the Washington Heritage Trail. It is a prime spot for recreation, and multiple outfitters lead rafting, tubing, fishing, biking, and paddling trips, as well as offer zip line courses, camping, and shuttle services.

Visit Harpers Ferry and Bolivar’s website.

Download brochure: C&O Canal Trail to History: Point of Rocks, Brunswick, Harpers Ferry

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