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Hobart
The Book Village of the Catskills, is an incorporated village in the Township of Stamford and is home to the Stamford Town Hall. With a population of just under 400, it is small enough to walk to every place of business, worship, eating, shopping, library, and the Hobart Community Center.
Hobart is the location of the only US book town East of the Mississippi River, drawing  national and international visitors throughout the year. The book town concept began in the 1960's as a way of encouraging economic growth and tourism in Hay-on-Wye (Wales), a small river town with a rich agricultural history. Since then, the book town phenomenon has flourished internationally and book towns have sprung up all over Europe, Asia and the United States. Although Europe has scores of government-sponsored book towns, the United States has only one (in Nebraska). All the book stores in Hobart are privately-owned and funded. It now has 5 second-hand book stores and a coffee bar and has grown every year since it opened in 2005. With a quarter of a million books, prints, paintings, maps and other ephemera for you to browse through, it offers an experience unlike any other in the Eastern United States. Featured in an article in the New York Times, it is host to thousands of visitors and is an all-season tourist destination. Every second Saturday of the month there is a special event in the Village. Please check www.hobartbookvillage.com for details.
Hobart's local school, South Kortright Central School, is the only school in Delaware County to be recognized by U.S. News and World Report as one of the best high schools in the United States, and New York State has included SKCS in a research project to identify "best practices" that result in outstanding student performance.
Scenic vistas abound during every season and well-groomed river walks along both sides of the West Branch of the Delaware River start at the mill pond in the Hobart park. Hobart is also a stop along the 26-mile Catskill Scenic Trail.
Hobart is also home to Covidien, an industry leader in the production of pharmaceuticals.
Active organizations include the fire department and emergency squad, a number of churches, Rotary International, the Hobart Civic Association and the Hobart Historical Society.
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