The Daring Young Man

Copyright ©2002, 2003 by William L. Camp. All Rights Reserved.

Among the thousands of photographs in the collection of the Broome County (N. Y.) Historical Society is one particular carte-de-visite style photograph a little different than the usual dour portraits. This image shows a large crowd assembled on Court Street near the Exchange Hotel and west of the iron bridge over the Chenango Canal in Binghamton, New York. Hundreds of upturned eyes are focused on a single performer floating fifty feet over their heads. A daring young man is caught in half-step balancing on a tightrope casually pushing a wheelbarrow across Court Street. Besides the actual photograph, the card carries the name of the photographer - Webster. Cornelius H. Webster opened his photographic gallery at 67 Court Street in April, 1864. On this special day in the village, Webster or one of his assistants pointed a camera out of his third story window and captured a moment of a long-forgotten event.

In mid-August, 1865, an advertisement in the Amusements section of the Binghamton Daily Republican heralded the pending arrival of the "King of Tight Rope Performers" – M. John Denier. Besides being a "King," John Denier also proclaimed his original gymnastic feats had earned him the title of "Prince of Gymnasts." His performances were scheduled for three consecutive days – August 15th, 16th, and 17th at approximately six o'clock in the late afternoon. A 120-foot long rope stretching from the roof of the Exchange Hotel across Court Street to Yate's Clothing Store formed the stage on which John Denier would perform.

On the first night John Denier made his appearance in flesh-colored tights and with a balancing pole in hand stepped on the rope and strode rapidly across it. He returned to the starting point while walking backwards. After other tightrope stunts, a trapeze was suspended from the rope and John Denier performed a series of acrobatic routines on it. There were many gasps, cheers, and averted eyes among the crowd during his dangerous performance. Since admission could not be charged for this type of unconfined public exhibition, John Denier was dependent on six gentlemen to pass the hat (actually a box) among the crowd. The newspaper felt these men did a poor job since many on-lookers wanted to contribute but were not offered the opportunity. Most of these persons were among a group of four to five hundred spectators on the east side of the canal bridge (not visible in the photograph).

John Denier's second performance included a repeat of his acts from the previous evening with a new twist. He was blindfolded and a sack placed over his head. Holes in the sack permitted his hands to grip his balancing pole. Despite the handicaps, John Denier effortlessly crossed the rope. He finished the evening's performance with another routine on the trapeze.

For his final evening in Binghamton, John Denier donned a monkey costume (without a tail) and repeated his acts from the previous two shows. This time he placed a small hoop around his feet before doing the stunts. At the end of the close of his feats he came down one of the support ropes and performed additional acrobatics in the street. His visit to Binghamton was highly successful, at least, for the residents of the growing village. His performances were definitely more spell-binding and exciting than the more earth bound visits by traveling singing groups, phrenologists, or bell-ringers. After his triumph over Court Street, M. John Denier turned his attention to his next and possibly greatest challenge - Niagara Falls.

(Notes: Photograph courtesy of the Broome Historical County Society. Copies of the Binghamton Daily Republican reviewed at the Broome County Public Library, Binghamton, NY.)

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