This is the story of Morgan, his wife Clarissa, and their loyal “hobo horse” who made their home on a vacant lot at 40 Cherry Street.
An Urban Campsite on Cherry Street
In June 1893, Morgan and Clarissa Phillips were forced to find a new home. For years, they had lived rent-free in a tent on a vacant lot at 30 Monroe Street, but the property owners decided to build. So, the couple, along with their grandson, packed up their life and moved a few blocks over to a fenced-in lot at 40 Cherry Street.
This wasn't just any campsite. Their living quarters consisted of a small canvas tent for dining and a retired Tally-Ho stagecoach that served as their bedroom. Joining them in this quirky urban homestead were two “large, fierce dogs” and a big bay horse. Morgan, a former circus performer, was no stranger to life on the road, and he’d simply brought his unconventional lifestyle to the heart of the city.
Although their grown children begged them to move into a proper house, Morgan and Clarissa preferred their open-air life. They were a peculiar but familiar sight in the rapidly changing neighborhood, a remnant of an older, wilder New York.
Heartbreak and Hardship
The family’s story took a tragic turn in the winter of 1894. After a trip upstate, 76-year-old Clarissa fell ill with pneumonia. The tent was no place for a sick woman, so the couple rented two cramped rooms in a tenement at 33 Cherry Street. On February 13, after more than 40 years of marriage, Clarissa passed away.
Grief-stricken and confused, Morgan didn’t immediately call for an undertaker. Neighbors, seeing him kneeling by his wife’s motionless body, feared the worst and called the police. When officers from the Oak Street station arrived, they had to force the door open to find a terrified Morgan, who explained tearfully what had happened.
After Clarissa’s funeral, Morgan couldn’t bear to return to the rooms where she died. Instead, he went back to the vacant lot, wrapping himself in blankets and straw to sleep near his animals. When a police officer came to check on him, he found Morgan braving the cold. Since there was no law against sleeping outdoors, the officer let him be. Even an agent from the SPCA visited and reported that the horse and dogs were well-cared for, finding that the tent offered good protection for both man and beast.
A Broken Heart on Cherry Street
Morgan’s visible grief made him a target. For weeks, local troublemakers known as the "Cherry Hill boys" tormented the old man, throwing stones and tearing at his tent. The cruelty reached its peak on March 4, 1894, when they hung a straw-stuffed effigy from a telegraph pole on his lot, a grotesque parody of the heartbroken man.
It was the final blow. Three days later, on March 7, Morgan Phillips was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he died at the age of 76. The official cause was pneumonia, but the newspapers — and anyone who knew his story — suggested he really died of a broken heart.
What Happened to the Hobo Horse?
With Morgan’s passing, the story of the Cherry Street campsite comes to an end. We unfortunately don’t know what became of his grandson, his dogs, or the faithful bay horse that shared his final years. Did they find a new home with one of Morgan’s children? Or did the horse, a living symbol of a bygone era, simply wander off into the pages of forgotten history?
The lot at 40 Cherry Street didn't stay vacant for long. Soon, a factory was built on the site, and over the next few decades, the entire neighborhood was transformed. The old tenements and historic mansions—including one that briefly served as George Washington’s presidential residence—were cleared to make way for massive public housing projects.
So, the next time you find yourself walking in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge, take a detour through the Governor Alfred E. Smith Houses. As you walk past the modern brick towers, picture a small canvas tent, a retired stagecoach, and a lonely old circus man finding his final comfort in the company of his loyal horse. It’s a quiet, powerful reminder that New York City’s history is full of incredible stories, often found in the most unexpected of places.
