Bowery Theatre (1834)

During the early 19^th century Bowery Theatre, located in the Bowery Neighbourhood in Manhattan, New York City, was a location that was designed for musical concerts and performing arts. The Theatre was mainly active from 1820s until the 1840s. The Theatre had first burned down in the later part of 1830, after which, Thomas Hamblin an actor, had become the sole theatre manager. After Bowery Theatre was rebuilt, the English-born George Percy Farren had joined the Theatre as a stage manager and actor. The Theatre had experienced significant successes after its ventures into the Shakespearean works such as Henry VI and Hamlet. However, the Bowery Theatre became subject to controversy and riot and one of the key affected locations during the New York’s Anti-Abolitionist Riots in 1834. Word broke out that Farren had fired an American actor and made disrespectful comments about Americans, the situation became even tenser when it was found that Farren was strongly in support of the abolitionist movement, and the end to slavery, this did not resonate well with the anti-abolitionists.

In the summer of 1834, New York City experienced several coordinated riots by the anti-abolitionists. During the early 19^th century tension began to increase in the city between the pro-slavery supporters and the anti-slavery supporters. After Britain had passed the Slavery Abolition Act in 1833, this had a significant influence on the anti-slavery actions and campaigns, and Bowery Theatre became subject to the violence and the riot that broke out in 1834.

Thomas Hamblin became the sole manager of the Bowery Theatre after it had been damaged by fire. Not long after this incident, George Percy Farren had joined the Theatre as a stage manager and as an actor, this was considered an unpopular unemployment, as by this point in time the English were associated with the abolitionist campaign, and George Percy Farren had demonstrated his strong anti-slavery views.

With what became known as the Farren Riot, started with George Percy Farren making derogatory comments about Americans, “Damn the Yankees; they are a damn set of jackasses and fit to be gulled.”, furthermore, it was revealed that Farren had dismissed an American actor. The news of Farren’s actions had been spread throughout the city with the use of Handbills that had been pasted on the walls of New York. Farren’s action did not go down well with the residents of the city, and this added to the already existing tension between New-Yorkers.

In addition to this, several other key figures in the abolitionist movement like Lewis Tappan and Arthur Tappan was strong advocates for the end of the slavery, and Arthur had founded the New York Anti-slavery society as well as the Emancipator, a newspaper that called for abolition of slavery. Actions such as these further complicated the relations.

On Wednesday 9^th July, fuelled with anger as a result of Farren’s comments and action, approximately four thousand pro-slavery rioters stormed the Bowery Theatre, where a benefit performance was taking place for Farren, by the popular actor Edwin Forrest. As a result of this riot, Farren immediately went into hiding, whilst Forrest and Thomas Hamblin tried to calm down the rioters, but to no avail, as they demanded for Farren to appear and apologise. The rioters had completely surrounded the Theatre, blocking the doors and all possible routes of escape. Many of the cast members were chased off the stage, whilst many of the rioters called for the deportation of African-Americans to Africa.

Philip Hone, who was the former Mayor of New York, wrote in his diary the following day about the events that took place at the Bowery Theatre. He described that to help calm down the rioters, Thomas Hamblin began to wave the American flag; however, even this did not calm the rioters down completely. It was when Hamblin had made one of the singers sing some patriotic and popular American anthems such as ‘Yankee Doodle’, and ‘Zip Coon’, did the rioters began to calm down. It has also been recorded that Hamblin had apologised for Farren’s actions himself. By which time the police had arrived and drove the protestors out.

The Bowery Theatre was one of the key areas that were impacted by the New York’s Anti-abolitionist riots in 1834, and the riot has been referred to as the Farren riot, as well as the Tappan riot. Both Farren and Tappan’s action have been considered as a triggering point that eventually caused the increasing tension between the abolitionists and the anti-abolitionists to implode. Over the 19^th and 20^th century the Bowery Theatre has been modernised and taken over by several different owners. The original Bowery Theatre had been burned down, and therefore the original structure does not exist today. The location does not bare its significant history, but the location of the Bowery Theatre can be located near Canal Street, Chinatown.

Cockrell, Dale. Demons of Disorder. 1997.

Hone, Philip . The diary of Philip Hone, 1828-1851.

Burrows, Edwin G. Wallace, Mike . Gotham, A History of New York City to 1898. 1998.

LEVY, DANIEL S.. New York City: the life and times of the Bowery Theater, Oxford University Press's Academic Insights for the Thinking World. March 4th, 2022. Accessed November 9th, 2022. https://blog.oup.com/2022/03/new-york-city-the-life-and-times-of-the-bowery-theater/.