Henry Bowers and Mike Hanlon

Henry Bowers and Mike Hanlon are antagonists whose relationship is defined by racial hatred, violence, and a final deadly confrontation in the Derry Public Library. Henry, driven by his father's paranoid racism and the influence of the entity It, terrorizes Mike throughout their childhoods and, twenty-seven years later, attempts to murder him. Their conflict culminates in a brutal knife fight that leaves Mike hospitalized and Henry dead, marking the end of Henry's role as It's human agent.

Origins of Hatred

Henry Bowers's hatred for Mike Hanlon was instilled by his father, Oscar "Butch" Bowers, a paranoid and violent man who blamed the Hanlon family for his own misfortunes. Butch told Henry that Will Hanlon had poisoned his chickens and then used his influence to have Butch jailed, forcing him to sell his prized Mercury automobile. This litany of grievance was repeated constantly, and Henry absorbed it completely. The Bowers farm was located on Witcham Road, less than a quarter of a mile from the Hanlon farm, making the two families close neighbors and constant targets of Henry's resentment. Henry's father taught him that all black people were cunning and hateful, and that the Hanlons in particular were responsible for the family's decline. This indoctrination turned Henry into a relentless persecutor of Mike, who went to a different school—the Neibolt Street Church School—and thus had fewer opportunities to cross paths with Henry, but was never truly safe.

Childhood Violence and the Dog's Death

Henry's campaign against Mike began early and escalated steadily. In the spring after he killed Mike's dog, Henry ambushed Mike on Witcham Road, which was a quagmire of mud beyond the Bowers place. Henry knocked Mike down, slathered mud across his face, plugged his ears and nostrils with it, and ripped his jacket and shirt before slamming a poultice of mud over his bellybutton. As he did this, Henry screamed, "Now you're black! Now you're REEEELY black!" and later, "I killed your dog, black boy!"—though Mike, with mud in his ears, did not hear the confession. Mike's mother, Jessica, was furious and wanted Will Hanlon to call the police, but Will refused, knowing that Chief Borton would not act against a white man in Derry. Will told his son that he would have to be careful where he took his stand, and that Henry Bowers was not worth the trouble. Mike accepted this, but the fear and hatred Henry instilled in him never faded.

The Apocalyptic Rockfight

On July 3rd, 1958, Henry and his gang—Victor Criss, Belch Huggins, Peter Gordon, and Moose Sadler—spotted Mike walking alone to a band rehearsal at the Church School. Henry led the chase, and Mike was forced to run for his life. He managed to scale a fence into the trainyards, but Henry and his friends followed. Cornered, Mike picked up chunks of coal and threw them, striking Henry in the forehead and drawing blood. Henry responded by throwing an M-80 firecracker at Mike, which exploded nearby. Mike escaped over another fence and into the Barrens, where he stumbled into the gravel-pit where the Losers' Club was gathered. When Henry and his gang burst into the pit, they found Mike standing with Bill Denbrough, Richie Tozier, Ben Hanscom, Eddie Kaspbrak, Stan Uris, and Beverly Marsh. The ensuing rockfight drove Henry and his friends out of the Barrens, and Mike was accepted into the Losers' Club. This confrontation marked the first time Mike had allies against Henry, and it changed the dynamic of their conflict.

The Final Confrontation in the Library

Twenty-seven years later, on the night of May 30th, 1985, Henry Bowers escaped from Juniper Hill, the insane asylum where he had been confined for killing his father. Driven by the voice of It, he made his way to the Derry Public Library, where Mike was working late. Henry confronted Mike, calling him "nigger" and revealing that he had been the one to poison Mike's dog, Mr. Chips. He pulled a switchblade—the same knife he had used to kill his father—and attacked. Mike defended himself with a letter-opener stamped "JESUS SAVES," but Henry stabbed him in the thigh, severing his femoral artery. Mike managed to apply a tourniquet and call for help, but Henry, also badly wounded, fled into the night. Mike was hospitalized in grave condition, while Henry later died in Eddie Kaspbrak's hotel room after a second attack. The fight in the library was the final, brutal culmination of a lifetime of racial hatred and violence, ending with both men broken and one dead.