Disappearing Cities: Bovey No Longer Booming

BOVEY - Businesses closing and schools and city services combining is normal on the Iron Range. It's no secret the Iron Range economy is struggling and has been for quite some time, but some towns have ended up worse off than others. Bovey is no exception."I really grew up in probably the best years that the town had," said long-time Bovey resident, Patty Walls. Flash back to Bovey more than 70 years ago."They say there was 21 liquor stores," said Bovey Mayor Mike Bibich."I guess there were some girls around,” Walls blushed. “Strawberry Hill was noted for that." Walls and Bibich have lived in Bovey most of their lives and they have seen their hometown slowly disintegrate into nearly nothing."I think slowly after the war it started going down,” Walls remembers. “By the early 1950's you could really start to see it." At one time Bovey was a town that had a whopping 73 store fronts."There were clothing stores, dry good stores, appliance stores, several gas stations, three car dealerships," listed Walls. Like many Iron Range towns it was iron ore attracting thousands to the area. From the 1930's to about World War II Bovey was home to nearly 1600 people, and then something changed."Young kids had to move to the cities and everything for work,” said Mayor Bibich. “The highway moving around town didn't help." The state built Highway 169 around Bovey instead of through it, and to make matters worse mining jobs dwindled so people left town causing many of Bovey’s businesses to close their doors for good. “There's one grocery store, and then Mikes bar,” listed Walls. “We have a library, the post office, then Annabella's and that's it.” Being built on either side of Bovey are not one but two brand new Magnetation plants. "Each one is going to have about 200 jobs,” explained Bibich. “That'll make a big difference because people will want to live where they work." The mayor hopes the new plants will draw people back to town, so he's got a plan to build full neighborhoods in Bovey."So we're just trying to create that housing and get that volume of people up then maybe business will follow," Bibich hopes. He already owns the only bar in town, but now the mayor is hoping to trigger economic development by re-opening a local favorite pizza place."If somebody gets a business they're going to get people from Rapids to come here then," he explained. Hope and memories of a flourishing city is all the little town of Bovey has left."I'm hoping we're not going to be known as a bedroom community," Bibich said. As some work to see Bovey come back to life others have their own opinions of what the future holds."I think it'll always be a bedroom community from now on,” said Walls. “I don't see any stores coming." To make ends meet Bovey is teaming up with nearby Coleraine to build a new fire and police station. The mayor says in a few years the two will be working as one.