USA > New York > Tioga County > Owego > Owego. Some account of the early settlement of the village in Tioga County, N.Y., called Ah-wa-ga by the Indians, which name was corrupted by gradual evolution into Owago, Owego, Owegy and finally Owego > Part 33
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40
Mulholland was a refined and in- telligent actor, and quick at repartee. While playing in Rochester, N. Y., some one in the gallery threw a piece of stove pipe at him on the stage. In- stead of resenting it he looked up quickly and asked why the stove had not been sent along with the pipe. This reply to what was intended as an insult put the entire audience in jov- ial accord with him at once and cap- tured it for the rest of the perform- ance.
The cast of Kotzebue's play of "The Stranger," one of the plays produced at Owego by Hough's company was as follows:
The Stranger. T. B. Mulholland
Count Wintersen. Mr. Morris Baron Steinfort. Mr. Goodenow
Solomon
Mr. Hough
Peter
Mr. Tozer
Tobias
Mr. Ross
Francis Mr. Collins
Mrs. Haller. Miss Kate Ludlow Countess Wintersen . Mrs. Wray
Charlotte . Mrs. Hough
Annette Mlle Eveline
Kate Ludlow, the leading lady of the company, was a fine actress. Her husband, Joseph Littell, was a popular actor but was not with Hough's com-
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pany. His first wife was Malvina Pray, from whom he was divorced and who was afterward married to Wm. J. Florence, the celebrated come- dian. He died in 1856.
Kate Ludlow was in her day one of the most prominent actresses America. She was born in 1820 on the coast of Maine, and at an early age was adopted by the officers attached to the first United States artillery, then stationed at Fulton, Me. She was educated at Gorham semi- nary at Gorham, Mass. She made her first appearance on the stage in 1843 at the museum in Balti- more, Md. After her appearance with Hough's company at Owego she went to New York, where she was leading woman at the old Broadway theatre several seasons. Thence she went to Boston, where she supported Junius Brutus Booth at the Hollis street the- atre, afterward travelling with Booth through the country. After Booth's death she supported James E. Mur- .dock, George Vandenhoff, and other stars. In June, 1899, she was ad- mitted to the Edwin Forrest home at Holmesburg, Pa., near Philadelphia. where she is now living at the ad- vanced age of 89 years. She is, prob- ably, the oldest living actress in America.
Mr. Morris was Thomas E. Morris, who was born at Troy, N. Y., and who was 24 years old when he appeared at Owego. He was afterward manager for John Brougham, the celebrated Irish actor and author and married Brougham's step-daughter. He was manager of the Waverley theatre in New York, of the Park theatre in
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Brooklyn, and of the Grand opera house in New York when James Fiske owned it, and was later a member of the famous Union Square theatre com- pany. He died in New York in Octo- ber, 1885.
Mr. Collins was Oliver B. Collins, who began his long career on the stage at Barnum's museum in New York in 1852, the year previous to his appearance at Owego. He spent most of his life on the stage, playing in the companies of Booth, Barrett, Forrest, and other eminent actors. He died in January, 1907, at the Victoria hotel at the Highlands of Neversink, N. J., of which hotel he was the owner, aged 78 years.
Mrs. Mary A. Wray, born at Ridge- field, Conn., in 1804, went on the stage at the old Chatham theatre in New York city in 1820 as a dancer. She supported the great actors of the time, Forrest, Junius Brutus Booth, and others. In 1848 she was with the Seguin opera company. In 1864, when she was sixty years of age, she retired from the stage. She died in October, 1892, at Newton, L. I., in the home that had been purchased for her by her son, Billy Wray, the negro min- strel, who was lost in the burning of the steamer "Evening Star," while on the way from New York to New Or- leans in 1866. The Mlle Eveline of Hough's company was Mrs. Wray's daughter, Eveline Wray. Another son of Mrs. Wray, Edward A. Wray, was with her when she was in Owego. He was only 14 years old. He also be- came a negro minstrel and died at Edwardsville, Ill., in 1866, the same year of his brother's death.
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Mr. Goodenow was John Goodenow, popularly known as Jack Goodenow, a handsome man and good actor, of whom little is now known. J. B. Tozer, the low comedian of the com- pany, was a very popular actor and was with Hough when he played in Patch's hall in 1851. In 1854 he was the low comedian at Barnum's mu- senm in New York. He retired from the stage in 1859. Mr. Ross, who was known as Tony Ross, played old men. He was an excellent actor.
Garry A. Hough had an eventful career. He was born at Potsdam, N. Y., in 1814 and at 14 years old be- came a printer's apprentice. He worked at one time as a printer for A. H. Calhoun in the old Owego Ad- vertiser office in this village. He bought the Honeyoye Falls Standard, which he published until 1836, when he quit the printing business on ac- count of ill health and became an ac tor. In 1845 he played in the company of Isaac Singer Merritt, who invented the sewing machine and died a mil- lionaire. In 1865 and 1866 he played "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and other plays through the state under canvas. He afterward became manager succes- sively of the Atheneum theatre and the opera house at Detroit, Mich. He died in that city in January, 1896.
After the great fire of September, 1849, George W. Fay built the three- story brick building which stands on the north side of Front street, the sec- ond store east of Lake street. It was the first brick building erected after the fire, and was completed and occu- pied in May, 1850. The lower floor was occupied by Mr. Fay as a drug store and the third floor was used as
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a public hall and known as Fay's hall. Here all shows and public entertain- ments were given until Patch's hall was built in Lake street. No theat- rical company came to Owego during the short time this hall was in exist- ence. It was a small one and only an- swered a temporary purpose.
As the business portion of the vil- lage was gradually rebuilt it was found that Patch's hall was too small to hold the average Owego audience. When Patch's hall was built there was no further need of the smaller hall, and Fay's hall was closed. Mr. Fay, however, in turn thought that a larger hall than Patch's hall was needed. So he built the present block of two stores, over which is Ahwaga hall, on the site of the old Fay drug store on the north side of Front street, and completed it in May, 1853. Ahwaga hall had no stage, and when- ever one was needed a temporary one was built of rough boards. A few years later a stage was built with steps at each side, which stage could be moved from one part of the hall to another when desirable. There was a wide doorway on the east side opening into the Ahwaga house, which was used for the convenience of dancers when balls were given in the hall and suppers served to the dancers in the dining room of the hotel. The western part of the Ah- waga house block was subsequently sold to George S. Leonard and several years afterward the doorway was closed with a brick wall.
Ahwaga hall was for many years owned by Mr. Fay and Lyman Tril- man. In the summer of 1899, eigh-
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teen years after Mr. Truman's death, Lyman T. Stanbrough, executor of the Lyman Truman estate, entirely re- constructed the hall. A new floor of Georgia pine was laid and the walls were wainscoated to the height of five feet. The ceiling and walls were cov- ered with steel and artistically painted. Other improvements were made, making it the handsomest pub- lic hall anywhere in this part of the state. The block was sold to Joel C. Kenyon in December, 1899.
The building of Ahwaga hall caused a renewed interest in theatricals, and the coming of dramatic companies be- came more frequent. In June, 1853, a company under the management of William H. Meeker played there. The opening piece was Coleman's "Iron Chest," in which Meeker, who was an excellent tragedian, played Sir Ed- ward Mortimer. The company re- mained here a week and drew fair houses. Meeker afterward played in the New York theatres, supporting Edwin and John Wilkes Booth, Edwin Forrest, E. L. Davenport, and other noted actors. He was on the stage 45 years from 1843 to 1888, and died at New Rochelle, N. Y., March 31. 1905, aged 83 years.
In the following October Tozer & Germon's theatre played a week at the hall. The managers were J. B. Tozer, the low comedian of G. A. Hough's company, and Greenbury C. Germon, who was the father of Effie Germon, who was at that time only eight years old and who afterward at- tained a brilliant reputation as a star. In the company was Frank S. Chan- frau, who a few years previous had made a remarkable hit at Mitchell's
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Olympic theatre as Mose, the firemap, in "A Glance at New York," and in his excellent imitations of other ac- tors in the part of Jerry Clip in the farce of "The Widow's Victim," some- times known as "The Stage-Struck Barber."
When the company left New York it was under an agreement whereby Chanfran was to receive one-half of the net receipts each evening. Chan- frau did not prove so great an attrac- tion as had been expected, and the company broke up very soon after leaving Owego. Germon died in Chi- cago in the spring following his visit to Owego. He was the original Uncle- Tom when the play was produced for the first time in America at the Troy museum in 1853. His wife was the granddaughter of old Joseph Jeffer- son and cousin of the Joseph Jeffer- son, who was famous as Rip Van- Winkle.
Chanfrau was supported here by MIlle. Albertine, a danseuse in early life and afterward an actress. She supported the elder Booth and later travelled with Chanfrau from 1850 to 1857. In 1857 she went with Gustavus V. Brooke, the tragedian, to Australia and while there was stricken with a fever, which was followed by total blindness. Chanfrau's last appear- ance in Owego was in "Kit, the Ar- kansas Traveller," at Wilson opera house. He died at Long Branch Oct. 2, 1884, leaving an estate valued at $300,000.
In April, 1854, a company under the management of P. Page ran the play of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" one week. Mrs. Stowe's novel had been drama- tized two years previous, but it had
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not reached Owego, and as it had made a sensation throughout the country the company drew good houses here. The leading actor was G. A. Nichols.
The New York Dramatic Company, under the management of James Ponisi, was at first refused a license by the board of trustees, but license was afterward granted by each mem- ber of the board individually. The company opened in "La Tour de Nesle" March 23, 1857. Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Turner played the leading parts and Daniel Myron acted Irish char- acters in the farces. Lizzie Ross, a daughter of Tony Ross, of the G. A. Hough company and the wife of My- ron, was an excellent soubrette. The "old man" was H. O. Pardey, an Eng- lishman, an excellent actor and dra- matic author, who wrote the comedy of "Nature's Nobleman" for Wm. E. Burton. He was somewhat dissi- pated, and was found dead in the street in Philadelphia March 3, 1865.
James Ponisi, the manager of the company, was an Englishman, a poor actor, and the husband of Madame Ponisi, who was for many years a leading actress in the New York the- atres. J. B. Turner was stricken blind while playing with W. J. Scan- lan's company at Waterbury, Conn .. in November, 1866. He had been on the stage thirty-six years at that time.
A unique dramatic combination was the company managed by John F. Breyer, which opened at Ahwaga hall Ang. 5, 1858. It was composed of members of one family-Mrs. J. E. Breyer, her three sons and two daugh- ters. They had thirty pieces of
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scenery. The stage was built at the north end of the hall. The scenery. flies, and wings were held in place by an ingenious arrangement of poles and heavy cords, not a nail being driven. They had the most complete outfit of properties and costumes ever carried by a travelling theatre, all of which they had brought with them from Scotland a short time previous to their visit to Owego, and which had been used by the father of the family, John E. Breyer, who toured England and Scotland in Shakespearian plays for thirty years and who died in Scot- land in 1857, while travelling with his company.
The expenses of the Breyers here were small, and their stay of three weeks in Owego was a profitable one. although the houses were light. They did not stay at a hotel, but hired the small house which is still standing on the south side of Temple street west of and adjoining the old grammar school building, where they "kept house," the same as their temporary neighbors. The music was supplied by a very large hand organ, which was kept behind the scenes. The com- pany played "Don Caesar de Bazan," 'Pizarro." "The Castle Spectre," "Macbeth," "The Lady of Lyons," "Othello," "Rob Roy," "King Richard III," "The Honeymoon," "Douglas," and other standard plays, concluding each evening with a farce. The ver- satility and ingenuity shown by some of the members of the family in per- sonating three or four different char- acters in the same play was re- markable.
After leaving Owego the family went west. Mrs. John F. Breyer, the
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mother, who was a most excellent actress, died at Fort Wayne, Ind., July 15, 1864. Then the family be- came scattered. John F. Breyer, the eldest son, was for several years the leading man in the stock companies in various cities of the west. He after- ward managed his own company, known as the Maggie Breyer Comedy Company, and was very successful. He died at Creston, Ill., Feb. 12, 1889.
William V. Breyer, the younger brother, was afterward a member of western stock companies and was manager later of the Enoch Arden Combination, in which he sustained the principal roles. Several years ago he purchased a ranch near North Platte, Nebraska, and retired from the stage. He was too good an actor to have wasted his talent travelling in the west. Had he remained in New York he would have acquired reputa- tion and fortune.
The eldest sister, Miss Mary Breyer, was for many years known throughout the United States as a leading actress in city theatres and was manager of the Mary Breyer edy Company. While playing with Otis Skinner's company at Nashville, Tenn., in February, 1899, she was taken ill and died at a sanitarium. At one time there were three Breyer companies on the road, John F. Breyer heading the Breyer Dramatic Company in Illinois, Ohio, and West Virginia; Wm. V. Breyer heading the Enoch Arden Combination, playing Enoch Arden, Rip Van Winkle, and other pieces in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa, and the Mary Breyer Com- edy Company, touring Indiana, Ken- tucky, and Virginia.
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A theatre under the management of Morris & Brink opened at Ahwaga hall January 29, 1859. Edw. H. Brink was a good actor, but his partner, Morris, was a very bad one. Jenny Stanley was the leading lady. The low comedian was Thomas G. Riggs, an actor of Irish characters. He was a comedian. of the highest order and afterward played in all the large the- atres in the United States. He went to Australia and died in Tasmania in 1899.
In January, 1860, Charles Plunkett, an English actor, who came to Amer- ica in 1858 and was the leading actor at Placide's Varieties, the chief the- atre in New Orleans, La., came to Owego with a travelling company.
The low comedian, James S. Math- ews, was also an Englishman, and was the father of the famous equestrienne known as Ella Madigan, who was then a child. He afterward managed a the- atrical company of his own. He was manager of a theatre in Rochester five years and there he lost the savings of many years. He studied law and es- tablished himself at Oswego, where he died in 1891.
Another member of the company was Edw. T. Clinton, a son of the famous tragic actress, Mrs. Shaw, whose second husband was Thomas S. Hamblin, the tragedian, who was for twenty-three years manager of the Bowery theatre in New York. Clinton was a fine tenor singer and had been a member of the Rosalia Durand opera troupe. In addition to appear- ing in all the plays he sang "Larboard Watch," "Sally in Our Alley," and other old-time ballads between the
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Dieces. The leading lady was Jose- phine Woodward.
In the company was L. Chester Bartlett, of Binghamton. He was a brother of Rev. William Alvin Bartlett, who was pastor of the Owego Congre- gational church in 1857-8. He was then but a mere youth, but had consider- able talent. He abandoned theatri- cals, however, and became sheriff of Broome county and served as member of assembly.
Plunkett was a gifted actor, some- what resembling in appearance Charles Fetcher, the celebrated French tragedian. He was a genial man socially, and in telling Irish or Scotch stories he was inimitable in his dialect imitations. The year previous to his appearance here he was was the tragedian at the New Bowery theatre in New York. He died in Detroit, Mich., in April, 1882. His wife was a fine actress and one of the handsom- est women ever seen on the stage at Owego. She died at Fort Wayne, Ind., in September, 1867.
Ashley's hall was built in 1862 by Martin Ashley, who came to Owego a few years previous and opened a sa- loon and restaurant on the west side of Lake street, in which business he was very successful. The ground on which Ashley hall stood is on the west side of Lake street and is now occu- pied by Hill & Parker's brick block. The land was owned by Lorenzo Reeves, whose widow married Col. Benoni B. Curry. The buildings on the property were all burned in the fire of 1849 and the land was subse- quently owned by Abner L. Ely, of New York city, of whom Mr. Ashley
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bought it January 28, 1862. Mr. Ash- ley built a brick block thereon, in the second story of which was a hall. which he called Ashley's hall. The hall had a level floor, with a stage at the west end with a gallery along the north side over the stairway.
One of the favorites at this time was William A. Rouse, a popular comic actor, whose right name was William Augustus Fitznarding Berke- ley and who came of an aristocratic English family at Cheltenham, Eng- land. He was a good actor even when badly intoxicated, which was fre- quently his condition. He died in New York city in 1885. His wife, Fanny Denham Rouse, had been a great favorite at the Bowery theatre in New York and was a finished ac- tress. She was a member of various companies in New York city after her husband's death.
Another popular company was man- aged by John F. Sherry, who had been the leading man at one of the Phila- delphia theatres and who first visited Owego in January, 1866, and played in Ashley hall. He usually played two nights in each city or village he vis- ited. He was the first manager in these parts to bring out entirely new plays. When any new piece was par- ticularly successful in New York he purchased the right to produce it on the road, and as his company was a strong one the production was good in every instance. He played several seasons and was financially very suc- cessful, but after a few years he met with reverses through which he lost all he had saved. He left the stage and became a commercial traveller. Sherry was the first manager who had
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a brass band with his company. Some of the members of the band also con- stituted the orchestra.
Sherry's leading actress was Jennie Carroll, whose husband, John W. Car- roll, was also a member of the com- pany. She was a great favorite in those days. Her face was round and expressionless, but as an emotional actress she was one of the best ones that ever appeared here. She was at one time leading lady at the Park the- atre in Brooklyn and later the leading support of Edwin Booth at the Four- teenth Street theatre in New York. She died in January, 1897, in New York. The best comedian ever with Sherry's company was Harry Hawk, a clever actor and good fellow, who was playing Asa Trenchard in "The American Cousin" on the stage of Ford's theatre at Washington when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
From 1866 to 1871 Sherry's New York theatre was the most popular company on the road. It travelled through New York and Pennsylvania, seldom going outside of those states.
Mr. Ashley sold his block August 16, 1867, to Dr. James Wilson, who ex- pended about $2,000 in enlarging and improving the hall and changed its name to Wilson hall. In the night of August 16, 1867, a fire broke out in W. D. Ireland's boot and shoe store under the hall and the building was burned. Dr. Wilson immediately rebuilt the block, but constructed it as cheaply as possible. Later he furnished it with scenery, the first scenery that had been owned by a theatre at Owe- go. Then it became known as Wilson opera house.
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The interior of the theatre was burned out early in the evening of November 9, 1899, through the ex- plosion of some films of a moving pic- ture machine. It was rebuilt, but was entirely destroyed by another fire, which broke out in a bakery on the ground floor at 4 o'clock in the morn- ing of February 28, 1904.
After Sherry's company disappeared from the stage conditions in the theat- rical world underwent a change and Owego, like other towns, became a "one night stand." Many noted play- ers appeared at Wilson opera house at various times, among whom were Laura Keene, Kate Claxton, Caroline Richings and Zelda Seguin with the Castle-Campbell opera troupe; E. Z. C. Judson, the novelist, known as "Ned Buntline;" Buffalo Bill, Edward Har- rigan, John S. Clark and John E. Owens, two of the best comedians ever seen in America; John T. Ray- mond, Mckean Buchanan, Marie Zoe, George L. Fox, and many other theat- rical celebrities. In the fall of 1876 Ada Rehan appeared here with John T. Raymond's company, playing in a dramatization of Mark Twain's "A Gilded Age," and a few months after- ward she became the leading lady at Daly's theatre in New York and the foremost actress on the American stage.
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Some Account of the Owego Post Of- fice and Postmasters from the Year 1800, When There Were but 903 Offices in the Entire United States, to the Present Day-In One Instance the Strife for the Position of Postmaster Is Settled by a Spec- ial Election of Patrons of the Office by Direction of the Democratic Dis- trict Committee.
The census of 1790 reported only five post offices in the United States. In 1800 the number had been in- creased to 903. The first post office at Owego was, probably, established in 1800. The records of the post of- fice department at Washington show that the first report rendered from the Owego post office was from Jan- uary 1, 1801, by David Jones, and it is probable that he was appointed at about that time under the administra- tion of president John Adams.
But little is known of Mr. Jones. He was one of a family of early settlers here and was a brother of deacon Solomon Jones, who lived near the old Tinkham plaster mill on the west side of the Owego creek, north of this vil- lage. It is probable that Mr. Jones kept the post office in his dwelling house. The country was at this time generally unsettled, the population was widely scattered, and this was the only post office anywhere in these parts.
In 1801 Thomas Jefferson was elec- ted president, and the Federalists, af- ter having controlled the government twelve years, passed from power, never to be restored. The accession of a Democratic administration was followed by a decapitation of Federal
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postmasters. Mr. Jones was succeed- ed as postmaster of Owego by Eleazer Dana, who was appointed April 28, 1802, and he held the office fourteen years. His residence was on the north side of Front street on the ground now occupied by Lewis H. Leonard's house and the post office was kept in a small building on the opposite side of the street on the bank of the river, which Mr. Dana also occupied as his law office. At this time about all of the few houses at Owego were on the road now known as Front street.
Mr. Dana was succeeded as post- master by Stephen B. Leonard, who was appointed May 11, 1816. Mr. Leonard was the editor and publisher of the Owego Gazette. He removed the post office into his printing office, which then occupied the second story of John Hollenback's store on the north side of Front street. It was the second building west of Paige street and is now owned and occupied by A. C. Burt, having been reconstructed in- to a dwelling house many years ago. The entrance to the post office was by a flight of stairs on the north side of the building. Mr. Leonard held the office only one term of four years, but many years later he was reappointed.
Dr. Jedediah Fay was first appointed postmaster May 15, 1820, by postmas- ter-general R. Meigs, and he held the office continuously for twenty-two years. Judge Stephen Mack was for
some time his deputy. Dr. Fay's second commission was issued by president Martin Van Buren Feb. S, 1838. At the time of his appointment Dr. Fay lived in a little red house, which stood close to the sidewalk at the southeast corner of Front and
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Church streets. There was no street then where Church street is now. After a time Dr. Fay took charge of judge John R. Drake's mercantile business and removed the post office from his little red house into judge Drake's store, which stood into judge Drake's store, which stood on the south side of Front street, op- posite Lake street. Later he removed the office into a wooden building one and one-half stories high, which stood two doors east of the Drake store and in which he had opened a drug store. When Dr. Fay built his brick store in 1835 on the north side of the street where Ahwaga hall now stands the post office was removed thereto, and there it remained until 1841.
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