The Bowery: The Strange History Of New York's Oldest Street
by Stephen Paul DeVillo /
2017 / English / EPUB
4.4 MB Download
From peglegged Peter Stuyvesant to CBGB’s, the story of the
Bowery reflects the history of the city that grew up around it.
From peglegged Peter Stuyvesant to CBGB’s, the story of the
Bowery reflects the history of the city that grew up around it.
It was the street your mother warned you about―even if you lived
in San Francisco. Long associated with skid row, saloons, freak
shows, violence, and vice, the Bowery often showed the worst New
York City had to offer. Yet there were times when it showed its
best as well.
It was the street your mother warned you about―even if you lived
in San Francisco. Long associated with skid row, saloons, freak
shows, violence, and vice, the Bowery often showed the worst New
York City had to offer. Yet there were times when it showed its
best as well.
The Bowery is New York’s oldest street and Manhattan’s broadest
boulevard. Like the city itself, it has continually reinvented
itself over the centuries. Named for the Dutch farms, or
The Bowery is New York’s oldest street and Manhattan’s broadest
boulevard. Like the city itself, it has continually reinvented
itself over the centuries. Named for the Dutch farms, orbouweries
bouweries, of the area, the path’s lurid character was
established early when it became the site of New Amsterdam’s
first murder. A natural spring near the Five Points neighborhood
led to breweries and taverns that became home to the gangs of New
York―the “Bowery B’hoys,” “Plug Uglies,” and “Dead Rabbits.” In
the Gaslight Era, teenaged streetwalkers swallowed poison in
McGurk’s Suicide Hall.
, of the area, the path’s lurid character was
established early when it became the site of New Amsterdam’s
first murder. A natural spring near the Five Points neighborhood
led to breweries and taverns that became home to the gangs of New
York―the “Bowery B’hoys,” “Plug Uglies,” and “Dead Rabbits.” In
the Gaslight Era, teenaged streetwalkers swallowed poison in
McGurk’s Suicide Hall.
A brighter side to the street was reflected in places of
amusement and culture over the years. A young P.T. Barnum got his
start there, and Harry Houdini learned showmanship playing the
music halls and dime museums. Poets, singers, hobos, gangsters,
soldiers, travelers, preachers, storytellers, con-men, and
reformers all gathered there. Its colorful cast of characters
includes Peter Stuyvesant, Steve Brodie, Carry Nation, Stephen
Foster, Stephen Crane, and even Abraham Lincoln.
A brighter side to the street was reflected in places of
amusement and culture over the years. A young P.T. Barnum got his
start there, and Harry Houdini learned showmanship playing the
music halls and dime museums. Poets, singers, hobos, gangsters,
soldiers, travelers, preachers, storytellers, con-men, and
reformers all gathered there. Its colorful cast of characters
includes Peter Stuyvesant, Steve Brodie, Carry Nation, Stephen
Foster, Stephen Crane, and even Abraham Lincoln.The Bowery: The Strange History of New York’s Oldest
Street
The Bowery: The Strange History of New York’s Oldest
Street traces the full story of this once notorious
thoroughfare from its pre-colonial origins to the present day.
traces the full story of this once notorious
thoroughfare from its pre-colonial origins to the present day.