Koster and Bial's

 

Library of Congress. 1896.

The original Koster and Bial's Concert Hall was located at 23rd and 6th Avenue in New York. The image below from the NY Public Library Digital Collections shows the venue from 1892. By time Agnes Atherton performed with Anna Held at a series of November 1897 shows, Koster and Bial's had relocated to 34th and 6th Avenue. This is the present location of Macy's at Herald Square, final stop for the famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in NYC.

Koster & Bial's. NYPL.

The 24th and 6th Avenue location was the home of Koster and Bial's The Corner. I highly recommend reading this December 2023 article on Ephemeral New York titled "From Gilded Age Beer Garden to 1970s Strip Club: 100 years of vice on a Chelsea corner." This location is right across the street from the hotel I've been using as a base for the past three trips to the city. I didn't know this history when I was visiting the city last month, but now that I know, I'll check out this spot on our next trip.