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definitions

cow town

noun
  1. a small town, especially one in a cattle-raising district in the western U.S. or Canada.
  2. a town or city, especially in the western U.S. or Canada, from which cattle are shipped to market.

Origin of cow town

First recorded in 1880–85
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for cow town

Historical Examples of cow town

  • Bear Cat was a cow-town, still in its frankest, most exuberant youth.

    The Fighting Edge

    William MacLeod Raine

  • Willets was a cow-town, and for the winter its activity was over.

    The Trail Horde

    Charles Alden Seltzer

  • But mentionin' color, the thought of that little affair do make my face as red as a cow-town on pay-day.

    Yellowstone Nights

    Herbert Quick

  • To suddenly stop off at a cow-town station, without baggage or definite itinerary, was unconventional, to say the least.

    Partners of Chance

    Henry Herbert Knibbs

  • A couple of rude groceries completed the necessary equipment of a "cow-town."

    The Eagle's Heart

    Hamlin Garland