As you arrive in Bolivar you will find a quaint little village about 10 miles south of Canton. Although Bolivar is a quiet, rural community over the centuries many interesting historical events have occurred in or near Bolivar that are worth noting.
In the 18th century, the Bolivar area was inhabited by tribes of Delaware, Seneca-Cayuga and Shawnee Indians who at times allied with the French or British over territory. This was a violent time in Ohio history where the natives were not only at war with other tribes but were concerned about the loss of their land to the French and British. One Delaware Indian leader, Shingas, is known to have established a village near Bolivar called Shingas Town.
Although the French and Indian War (aka the Seven Years War) ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1763 the American Indians needed to know how this affected them. An English officer named Henry Bouquet held a conference with three American Indian tribes around a council fire. In the fall of 1764 near modern day Bolivar, he negotiated peace with a coalition of Delaware, Seneca-Cayuga and Shawnee tribes. The French and Indian War was considered by some, including Winston Churchill as the first global or world war.
The only fort built in Ohio during the Revolutionary War was Fort Laurens. It was constructed in December, 1778 by General Lachlan McIntosh and was located west of the Tuscarawas River near Bolivar. The fort was named after Henry Laurens, the third president of the second Continental Congress. The original thought was the fort would offer some protection to both American settlers and the neutral Christian Delaware Indians. Fort Laurens was under siege from February 22-March 20, 1779 and abandoned later that year. A total of 21 people lost their lives at Fort Laurens.
Ohio became a state in 1803 and a few decades later (1825-1932) the Ohio Erie Canal was constructed. It contained 152 locks including many locks near Bolivar. It is interesting to note that as early as 1787 George Washington and Thomas Jefferson had discussed the feasibility of a canal linking Lake Erie to the Ohio River.
Cedar Crest Farm was originally designed in the 19th century to be a dairy farm, but was later converted to a beef and grain farm. For decades arrowheads were found in the fields and wildlife such as pheasants, deer, rabbits and quail were seen on the farm.
