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After his acquisition of Scudder's American Museum in New York City during 1841, 86 million onlookers subsequently viewed Phineas T. Barnum's accumulation of wild animals, including beluga whales, lions, tigers, two headed snakes and the first hippopotamus ever seen in the United States. In addition, there were ventriloquists, magicians and curiosities of nature, such as Chang and Eng, the original Siamese twins. One of P. T. Barnum's most successful attractions was Fiji the mermaid, with a human head atop a fish's body and tail -- something eventually revealed to be fake.
Between 1842 and 1868, additional rare animals of the world and other curiosities of nature were added, including Charles Stratton, a man standing only 25 inches tall. Stratton was better known as General Tom Thumb. Following Barnum's and Thumb's invitation to visit Abraham Lincoln, they traveled on to Great Britain to provide a command performance for Queen Victoria. Barnum's traveling museum then acquired a circus originally founded in Wisconsin, leading to multiple circus troops that toured areas of the U.S.
Still later, Barnum joined forces with James A. Bailey to create the entertainment empire of "Barnum and Bailey's Traveling Circuses." My own grandmother wrote of fond memories attending circuses and shows likely to have been those of Barnum and Bailey while growing up in Nebraska in the late 1800s. This new circus entity performed around the world until being purchased by Ringling Brothers for $400,000 in 1907. From then on, performances were dubbed, "The Greatest Show on Earth."
I experienced my first Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey circus during the latter 1950s in Kansas. The show offered both humor and jaw dropping amazement as trapeze acrobats flew through the air without any safety net, grabbing outstretched arms of the inverted catcher. The lion tamer's whip cracked as he poked growling lions and tigers that roared back when they sat up on haunches for a morsel of reward. Horses ran circles in the center ring with riders standing on their backs. A Volkswagen bug eventually drove to a ring where a dozen clowns piled out and began juggling bowling pins and dinner plates as others did the same, riding ten-foot-high unicycles or as they walked on stilts. There was so much going on, it was difficult to know which way to look. The circus was also memorable as one of the rare times I was permitted to have cotton candy.
A more recent circus I witnessed occurred at our small lake cabin this summer. Rather than a VW, an SUV rolled in this time and four miniature clowns between ages three weeks and five years emerged, along with their handlers.
The subsequent four-day show included mountains of odiferous soiled diapers, swimming in the lake, action-packed tube rides along with tears shed now and then. Macie, the traveling circus' Labrador retriever, dove tirelessly into the lake, dog-paddling to the bottom to gather baked potato sized rocks that were subsequently transported and spread throughout the yard for the lawnmower to discover later. A bushel basket of toys was quickly emptied inside the cabin, creating a minefield of obstacles. Enroute to the bathroom I tripped over LEGOs, resulting in an acrobatic nosedive to the floor. As was true with 1950s circus acrobats, no safety net was in place this time either.
I flew through the air with the greatest of ease,
Like a decrepit old man on a flying trapeze.
My actions weren't graceful, grandkids were oblivious,
My cranky old age became ever more obvious.
I smiled toward my grandson as he begged to go fishin',
Though talent for angling had long been forgotten
Such excitement, good food with occasional calamity
Brought memories to treasure from here to eternity.
Much fun was created from sunup to sundown.
Great memories are made with the circus in town.
Sommers is a retired Minot orthodontist, violinist with the Minot Symphony and author of the book, "Retirement? You Can't HANDLE the Truth!"