50 Bowery

On November 25, 1783, as the British withdrew from Manhattan, General Washington and his troops marched across the still rural island and down the Bowery. Stopping at the Bull's Head Tavern to rest, they were met by throngs of jubilant citizens and raised their glasses before marching further south into the city, to celebrate what became known as Evacuation Day, the end of the Revolutionary War.
Established circa 1755 in a butchers' district, the tavern's adjacent stockyard featured bear-and-bull-baiting. In the early 1800s, German-born owner Henry Astor exhibited "Old Bet", the second elephant in America. Bull's Head survived into the 1820s, patronized by writer Washington Irving
In 1858, this site became the Atlantic Garden, a grand beer and entertainment hall serving German immigrants of the area's Kleindeutchland ("Little Germany"). One of the few Bowery venues considered suitable for families, it was famous for its ladies' orchestra, the first of its kind in the U.S. Entertainment featured African American musicians Cole and Johnson and the premiere of the Gay 90s song, "Daisy Bell (A Bicycle built for Two)."
Popular for over half a century, the Atlantic Garden ended its days with Yiddish vaudeville and boxing matches before finally closing around 1915.
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David Freeland, author of Automats, Taxi Dancers & Vaudeville

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