Once the 3rd largest town in Latah County, Bovill was a center of logging operations for the Potlatch sawmill. Due to the colorful nature of a logging community, the need for entertainment prompted the construction of the Opera House in 1911. For nearly five decades it provided a community gathering place for dancing, music, masquerade balls, traveling comedy troupes, and moving pictures. Originally the moving pictures were shown using power provided by a generator until electricity was retrofitted.

After fires in 1914 destroyed much of Bovill's downtown commercial district, the wood structure of the Opera House became a distinctive architectural reflection of the town's identity. Today the Bovill Improvement Group is planning the restoration of the Opera House to once again be the epicenter for arts and entertainment.