Mechanics' Hall (New York City)
Mechanics' Hall was a
speeches
held by other groups.
The building eventually became a playhouse. During this time, it was variously known as the Abbey Theatre, Butler's American Theatre, and other names. The
Bryants Minstrels played at Mechanics' Hall for the first time in 1857, leaving after May 1866, when the house was taken over for a season by minstrel showman Charles "Charlie" White.[2]
In 1867, showman Robert Butler took over management of Mechanics' Hall following a fire that destroyed his former theater at 444 Broadway. Butler's luck was no better in the new venue as Mechanics' Hall was also destroyed by fire later that year.[3]
References
- ^ Dimmick, R.C. (1913). Our Theatres To-day and Yesterday. H.K. Fly Company. p. 42. Retrieved 2015-01-31.
- ^ New York Clipper, July 7, 1866.
- ^ (8 April 1868). Another Theatre Gone, The New York Times
- Crawford, Richard (2001). America's Musical Life: A History. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
- Henderson, Mary C. (2004). The City & The Theatre: The History of New York Playhouses: A 250 Year Journey from Bowling Green to Times Square. New York: Back Stage Books.
- Mahar, William J. (1999). Behind the Burnt Cork Mask: Early Blackface Minstrelsy and Antebellum American Popular Culture. Chicago: University of Illinois Press.
- Rock, Howard B. (1989). The New York City Artisan, 1789–1825: A Documentary History. State University of New York.
- Sweetster, M. F. (1883). New England: A Handbook for Travellers. A Guide to the Chief Cities and Popular Resorts of New England, and to Its Scenery and Historic Attractions: With the Western and Northern Borders, from New York to Quebec. 7 ed. Boston: James R. Osgood & Co.