The Bowery starts here. Like Broadway, the Bowery was once a Native American hunting trail. In Colonial times it was the Post Road to Boston, in the 19th Century it was the home of New York’s theatres, and the stomping ground of gangs like the Bowery Bhoys, and the Dead Rabbits. By the 20th century Chatham Square was a major transfer point for the Elevated Railway. Cheap and tawdry entertainments abounded (tattoo parlors! movie houses) attracted New Yorkers and sailors from the nearby docks. The Bowery had many cheap hotels and rooming houses and became the last resort for the down and out.