William Wild’s Hotel and the Birth of "Hotel Row"

Bohemia Historical Society

The First on the Block

William Wild’s Hotel and the Birth of Bohemia’s Hotel Row

A gathering outside William Wild's Hotel on Smithtown Avenue, late 19th century — The earliest days of Smithtown Avenue hospitality: a gathering outside William Wild’s Hotel, circa late 19th century. Note the horse-drawn delivery wagon and the unpaved road that would later become a major thoroughfare.

Decades before Smithtown Avenue became a busy thoroughfare connecting the town to an airport, it was a simple dirt road flanked by farmland. Yet even in those earliest days, this street was destined to become the heartbeat of social life in Bohemia.

While later generations would know the area for the Central Hotel or the MacArthur Field Hotel, the hospitality tradition actually began much earlier. A recent archival find brings us face-to-face with the pioneer of them all: William Wild’s Hotel.

The Pioneer of Hotel Row

Where It All Started

Local history archives identify Wild’s Hotel as likely the very first formal hotel established in the hamlet. Owned by William Wild, a Czech immigrant like many of his neighbors, this building set the precedent for what would eventually become Bohemia’s “Hotel Row.”

The photograph above freezes a specific moment in this evolution. The white picket fence, the horse-drawn wagon, and the crowd of men in suits and women in long dresses depict a time when the hotel served as the town square — a place where the community gathered not just for lodging, but to connect with one another.

Entertainment

“Hog Guessing” and Grand Balls

Life in 19th-century Bohemia was deeply agricultural, and the entertainment at Wild’s Hotel reflected those roots.

Unlike the disco era that would arrive a century later, the big draw at Wild’s was often the “hog guessing” contest. In these unique local competitions, residents would buy chances to guess the precise weight of a pig before it was slaughtered — a popular pastime that highlights the rural character of the early community.

Residents would buy chances to guess the precise weight of a pig before it was slaughtered.
The big draw at Wild’s Hotel

But the hotel was also a place of refinement. It hosted “grand balls,” New Year’s Eve celebrations, and traditional “hops” (dances) that allowed the hard-working families of the area to celebrate their shared culture.

1887

The “Wild West” of Long Island

Despite the idyllic scene in the photograph, the hotel’s history wasn’t without drama. In 1887, the building was the site of a sensational incident when a man named Philip Goodman was shot during a dispute. The event made headlines at the time, serving as a reminder that early Bohemia was, in many ways, a frontier town with its own share of danger and excitement.

Gone, But Not Forgotten

The Lost Legacy

Today, William Wild’s Hotel is no longer standing, having succumbed to the passage of time like the other historic wood-frame hotels that once lined Smithtown Avenue.

However, its legacy remains. As the first establishment to open its doors to travelers and locals alike, it paved the way for the vibrant social culture that defined Bohemia for generations. This photograph remains our best window into that lost world — a time when Smithtown Avenue was just a country lane, and William Wild was welcoming his first guests.