[1] The agency was named after Bhopawar, a village in Sardarpur tehsil, Dhar District of present-day Madhya Pradesh state.

The other chief towns of this region were: Badnawar, Kukshi, Manawar and Sardarpur, Chadawad Estate, Dattigaon.

The mighty Vindhya and Satpura ranges crossed the territory of the agency roughly from east to west, with the fertile valley of the Narmada River lying between them.

[2] At the time of its 1882 establishment, the agency had a total area of 7,684 square miles (19,900 km2), and its population was 547,546 according to the 1901 census.

In 1904 certain districts were transferred from this agency to the Indore Residency, created in 1899, and the area of Bhopawar was thus reduced by 3,283 square miles (8,500 km2).