Vandover & Sons Livery Stable Photograph
2010.70.2
Donor: Byron Vandover
 
 
A staple of any town in rural America until the introduction of the automobile was the livery stable.  Much like a modern rent-a-car dealer today, livery stables rented horses & buggies for short-term use.  Many livery stables also boarded horses for private individuals, sold hay and grain, and might have included a repair shop.
 
The Vandover & Sons Livery Feed and Sale Stable not only boarded horses, they sold feed and mules.  A pair of mules bought here could set you back $500.  Built in the 1880s the Vandover Livery was situated on 1st Street not far from the railroad station.  This location was perfect for catching out-of-towners in need of transportation.  By the turn-of-the-century their next door neighbor was in the same business, creating a bit of competition.  We don’t know when Vandover went out of business, but by 1914 the building sported the name F.D. Shelton Feed and Livery.
 
The livery stable lost popularity with the invention of the automobile.  Ironically, the building later became the first car dealership in town.  Today, the building is no longer standing as a fire destroyed it in 1963.  These once important buildings for trade and transportation have been forgotten over the years.  And while this building no longer stands we know exactly what it looked like due to this great image and others in our collection.