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Barnum,
Phineas Taylor (1810-1891) |
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His last
words: |
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"How were the circus receipts in Madison Square
Gardens?" |
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P.T. Barnum was the most famous American showman of all
time. He began his career in 1835 when he purchased a very old
hymn-singing slave named Joice Heth and exhibited her as the 161 year old
nurse of George Washington. As an additional attraction, he added the
preserved body of a FeeJee Mermaid--in reality the top half of a monkey sewn
to the tail of a fish. By 1841, Barnum had earned enough to open the
American Museum in New York City where his attractions included General Tom
Thumb and--for a short time--Jenny Lind in addition to a host of animals and
sideshow attractions. In 1871, he took his "circus" on the
road and, ten years later, merged his operation with James A. Bailey's.
After taking his "Barnum and Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth" on a
triumphant tour of London during the winter of 1889-1890, Barnum returned to
New York City. |
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Recommended readings: |
