Town of Bovina Bicentennial Celebration

This is a compilation of the notices I have posted over the past week on the Town of Bovina Bicentennial Celebration Facebook page. 

The long-awaited Bovina Bicentennial Celebration will kick off at 10 am on July 30 with a parade, starting at Coulter Brook Road and going through the hamlet to Creamery Road, ending on McIntosh’s flat. The parade will include floats, antique cars and farm equipment, the Delaware County Sheriff’s Mounted Patrol and finishing with the Lake Delaware Boys Camp. The floats, cars and vehicles will be on display throughout the afternoon on the flat, as will the Bovina Fire Department’s equipment, including the department’s first fire truck. Come see this celebration of our town!

Image is of Jack and June Burns on their 1970 float during the celebration of Bovina's  Sesquicentennial.

Be sure to come to the Bovina Bicentennial Festival on the McIntosh Flat on July 30 from noon until 4 for many fun things to buy and good things to eat. There will be Bovina souvenirs, books, baked goods, demonstrations of blacksmithing, butter making and spinning, children’s games and much much more. Ty’s Tacoria and Pam Guy’s Crossroads Café will be serving lunches and snacks.

Celebration organizers request that attendees not bring their dogs.

Photo is from the Town of Bovina's 1976 celebration of the nation's Bicentennial, taken by Dean Lapinel.

At 2 pm on Saturday, July 30, the Bovina vintage baseball team, the Bovina Dairymen will take on the Fleischmanns’ Mountain Athletics Club on Creamery Field (1396 County Highway 6) in Bovina. Come and cheer along Bovina’s home team during our Bicentennial Celebration!

More information about the Dairymen may be found on their website at https://www.bovinadairymen.org/

Photo shows what appears to be the outfield of the ladies softball game at one of the town picnics from the 1920s.

At 4:30 p.m., an exciting range of musicians from Bovina take the stage for a concert closing the bicentennial’s afternoon festivities. Musicians include Kate Burrascano, College Farm, True, Dan Pelletier, John "Chico" Finn, Laurie McIntosh, the Catskill Music Consort, Dan Finn, Mark Pelletier, Etienne Lytle, and Timothy Harlo Bray. Ira McIntosh will emcee and kick off the music. Don’t miss it!

Image is of the Bovina Coronet, probably from the 1890s or early 20th century.

Bovina's Bicentennial Celebration includes a very special art project. Bovina artists were given old images of Bovina buildings no longer in existence or altered and invited to do their own interpretation of them. These 10 paintings will be displayed in the hamlet during the celebration at the site where the original structure stood (or still stands). Thank you to Brooke Alderson for suggesting and coordinating this project. 

1. Antonio Mora - Strangeway’s Store and later Clayt Thomas’s garage, now home of Tom Hetterich

2. Mike Casey - Hilson’s Store, built in 1867, now Dry Town Tavern

3. Sandra Finkenberg - Kennedy Hotel, demolished in 1960, lot now vacant, across from Brushland Eating House

4. Lizbeth Firmin - Old Jock Hilson Home, burned in 1915

5. Lori Glavin - Creamery in 1943, building was refurbished on the outside a year or so later to its present look

6. Scott Hill - Creamery, original, constructed in 1902

7. Gary Mayer - Scott’s Bridge, built in 1870s, demolished in 1955

8. Rick Mills - Bovina Methodist Church, built in 1849, demolished in 1926, now residence across from Community Hall (photograph below of the old church)

9. Cornell Verlaan - J.R. Douglass home, later Alexander Hilson residence, replaced in 1920s with home of Mike and Christine Batey

10. Tim Cunningham - Kinmouth Store, later home of Clark and Gladys Lay, and Tim Cunningham, now home of Betty Powell

The Bovina Bicentennial celebration will wrap up with more food! A community picnic will take place at noon on July 31 under the tent at McIntosh’s flat. Bring a dish to pass and your own table service or bring your own lunch if you prefer. And there will be birthday cake! Children and adults are welcome to participate in a pie eating contest, tug of war and sack race. 

For those of you visiting from out of town, you can bring lunch with you. If you wish to buy your lunch at Russell’s Store, we are asking you, if possible, to order your lunch the day before so Ellen will be able to have it ready for you. Here's the order form you can use. Forms also are at Russell's and will be at the celebration on Saturday.