Staying Here

If camping isn’t your style and you need a roof over your head, take a look at the hotels, motels and B&B offerings in the area. Call ahead, and book your stays so you can enjoy Livestock to its fullest.

Bovina Background

For the uninitiated, Bovina Center is a hamlet of roughly 500 people tucked into the foothills of the Catskills. Established in 1820, the town, named after the Latin name for cattle, bovinus, was home to many dairy farmers over the years.Today, much of the farmland remains untouched by development, and city dwellers have taken up residence in old farmsteads. A bucolic setting with rolling hills and a river trickling or running (depending on the season) through the village, makes for the perfect hideaway, getaway and for those in on the secret, a place to set down roots.Ray LaFever, the town’s historian, writes affectionately about the history of Bovina on his Town of Bovina blog. Find out more about some of the interesting tidbits of Bovina's rich history, here. Thanks to Ray for keeping a fine and thorough record.

A Bovina Bargain

In February 1820, a committee, composed of Lewis Mabie and Robert Hamilton, accomplished the task of creating the Town of Bovina. They submitted a handwritten account of expenses for setting up the town:

To Distill or Not to Distill

Bovina currently is a ‘dry’ town, meaning that the sale of alcoholic beverages is not allowed. [The consumption is allowed!] This was a post-prohibition effort that took place in 1947. Up until that time, Bovinians were indulging in alcohol and making it themselves. Several distilleries were churning out mind-altering substances during the 19th century. One built by Cornelius Davis was housed in ‘Brushland’ and another in the Butt End was built and run by William Doolittle. In the 1980s, an effort was made to loosen up the liquor restrictions but voters elected to stay dry. Dry or wet, this town has staying power as it looks to its 200th anniversary in 2020. As Livestock hosts and longtime members of the community, we are delighted to be a proud part of the town’s history.