Bowmansdale, Pennsylvania

{{short description|Unincorporated community in Pennsylvania, US}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}

{{Infobox settlement

|name = Bowmansdale, Pennsylvania

|official_name =

|settlement_type = Unincorporated village

|nickname =

|motto =

|image_skyline =

|imagesize =

|image_caption =

|image_flag =

|image_seal =

|pushpin_map = USA Pennsylvania#USA

|pushpin_label = Bowmansdale

|pushpin_label_position = left

|pushpin_map_caption = Location within the state of Pennsylvania

|pushpin_mapsize =

|image_map =

|map_caption = Location within Cumberland county

|subdivision_type = Country

|subdivision_name = United States

|subdivision_type1 = State

|subdivision_name1 = Pennsylvania

|subdivision_type2 = County

|subdivision_name2 = Cumberland

|subdivision_type3 = Township

|subdivision_name3 = Upper Allen

|government_footnotes =

|government_type =

|leader_title =

|leader_name =

|leader_title1 =

|leader_name1 =

|established_title =

|established_date =

|unit_pref = Imperial

|area_footnotes =

|area_magnitude =

|area_total_km2 =

|area_land_km2 =

|area_water_km2 =

|population_as_of = 2000

|population_footnotes =

|population_total =

|population_density_km2 = auto

|timezone = Eastern (EST)

|utc_offset = -5

|timezone_DST = EDT

|utc_offset_DST = -4

|elevation_footnotes =

|elevation_ft = 408

|coordinates = {{coord|40|09|58|N|76|58|41|W|type:city_region:US-PA_source:GNIS-enwiki|display=inline,title}}

|postal_code_type = ZIP code

|postal_code =

|area_code =

|blank_name = FIPS code

|blank_info =

|blank1_name = GNIS feature ID

|blank1_info = 1170073

|website =

|footnotes =

}}

Bowmansdale is an unincorporated community located in Upper Allen Township in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States, south of Mechanicsburg. It is named after Jacob Bowman, a former Cumberland County sheriff.{{Cite web |title=Upper Allen, PA |url=https://uatwp.org/information/about_us.php |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=uatwp.org |language=en}}

Bowmansdale has been recognized as a historic district by the Cumberland County Planning Department.{{Cite web |url=http://www.ccpa.net/documentcenter/view/15824 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2014-04-06 |archive-date=2014-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407065016/http://www.ccpa.net/documentcenter/view/15824 |url-status=dead }} The other historic districts in eastern Cumberland County include the Market Street District in Camp Hill, the Lisburn Historic District, the McCormick Road Historic District, the Mechanicsburg Commercial Historic District, the New Cumberland Historic District, the Shepherdstown Historic District, and West Fairview Village.{{Cite web |url=http://pa-cumberlandcounty.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/Home/View/7977 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2014-04-06 |archive-date=2014-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407093345/http://pa-cumberlandcounty.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/Home/View/7977 |url-status=dead }}

Before permanent settlements were built in Cumberland County, numerous Native American transportation paths crossed the county, including those of the Shawnee and Delaware tribes.{{Cite web |url=http://www.ccpa.net/documentcenter/view/7971 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2014-04-06 |archive-date=2015-09-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923201201/http://www.ccpa.net/documentcenter/view/7971 |url-status=dead }} Bowmansdale was a recognized stop on the Conoy Trail that ran between the places that are now known as Lisburn and Carlisle.{{Cite web |url=http://www.ccpa.net/documentcenter/view/7971 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2014-04-06 |archive-date=2015-09-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923201201/http://www.ccpa.net/documentcenter/view/7971 |url-status=dead }}

Bowmansdale is home to the historic Lindenwood Farm.{{cite web|url=http://210eastlisburnroad.weebly.com/index.html |title=Lindenwood Farm - Home |accessdate=2015-06-09 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304234521/http://210eastlisburnroad.weebly.com/index.html |archivedate=2016-03-04 }} The founding date for the estate is unknown, but a document from the Cumberland County Courthouse recorded its sale by William Crawford to Robert Bryson in 1751. By the late 1780s, the property was home to tanning and limekiln businesses. Several buildings from the 1860s remain on the property, along with barns that are older.

By 1884, Bowmansdale was a stop on the Harrisburg and Potomac Railroad that connected Harrisburg to Shippensburg.Westfaeffer, Paul. History of the Cumberland County Railroad. Washington DC: National Railway Historic Society; 1979. The rail line was later purchased by the Reading Railroad.Westfaeffer, Paul. History of the Cumberland County Railroad. Washington DC: National Railway Historic Society; 1979.

The Bowmansdale Stoner covered bridge, built in 1867, was relocated to the campus of nearby Messiah College in Grantham in 1972.{{cite web| url=http://www.paonthego.com/Regions/PADutchCountry/YorkCounty/bowmansdale_covered_bridge.php |title=Bowmansdale Covered Bridge |publisher=PAontheGo.com |date= |accessdate=2014-04-06}}