These were on my Dad's show for many years. I'm guessing they are close to 1/2" scale. These were all steel trucks with wooden wheels and bought back in the 1930's as he had them as a child growing up. Remember the wooden Cheese boxes? Those made up the rest of his trucks for the seats and canvas, poles, etc. The whole show is still in the steamer truck at home.Friday, February 27, 2009
Do you remember these?
These were on my Dad's show for many years. I'm guessing they are close to 1/2" scale. These were all steel trucks with wooden wheels and bought back in the 1930's as he had them as a child growing up. Remember the wooden Cheese boxes? Those made up the rest of his trucks for the seats and canvas, poles, etc. The whole show is still in the steamer truck at home.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Do you remember these?
The slide is stamped 1961. It was in a large group of Circus World Museum slides. The only thing I am sure of is th horse skull did not belong to "Slick" or "Slim." I know Jim Peterson is glad to hear that!Do you remember these?
This slide is stamped 1968. This is another old Hagenbeck-Wallace wagon. I might be wrong but I believe the "Pop" Wonder Circus was from the movie "Jumbo" with Martha Raye and Jimmy Durante.Do you remember these?
The slide is stamped 1968. The wagons would have been old Hagenbeck-Wallace equipment that was left in the Al. G. Barnes winter quarters in California and disposed of from there. Louis Goebels took a lot of these and they were used in various movies over the years. This one starred in "The Big Circus" with Victor Mature.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
John Robinson calliope
There was some discussion a few days ago on the Circus Historical Society's Question and Answer board about the John Robinson calliope. This slide was taken in Chicago. There was a Chicago Railroad Fair that was held from 1948 through 1949. Could this have been the taken at nearly the same time? A good friend has identified landmarks in the background putting this in Chicago. The two previous Senhauser wagons in parade were all taken at the same time. The little bit of history I have was given to me compliments of the Joe Bradbury files.
This recorded file says the wagon was built by Bode wagon works in 1917. ( That is disputed now ). It was on the John Robinson Circus from 1918 to 1922. During the years of 1923 and 1924, it was kept stored at the Peru, IN. winter quarters. During the winter of 1924 / 1925, it was sold to Floyd and Howard King. The calliope was on their Walter L. Main Circus in 1925 to 1927. In 1928, it went out with their Gentry Bros. Circus. It was on the Gentry Show again in 1929 until the Gentry Show went Bankrupt.
It was then sold to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.
Now if you'll go to http://www.circushistory.org/Query.htm then find question # 2783, as Paul Harvey says, you can get the "Rest of the Story".
Added to all this is the fact that this calliope did indeed leave the Museum on several occassions for parades and charitable events. Sadly, the entire circus wagon collection at the Henry Ford Museum is stored in a warehouse and has been for several years now.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Norm and Bob Senhauser
Norm and Bob Senhauser were great Circus Fans from the Urichsville, Ohio area. I met them several times as a child growing up going to CFA tent gtaherings, conventions etc. Bob is pictured here with the white Mack truck that is now at the Circus World Museum. I can only assume that this was bought by the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. and then donated to the Circus World Museum. I have a couple real good friends who assure me that this Mack truck has no Circus background and more than likely was bought from the City of Chicago Water Dept.Norm and Bob Senhauser
Originally built as a cage for the Gollmars about 1910, this wagon remained with the Gollmars through 1916. James Patterson, who was a carnival owner, bought the Gollmar show in 1917. so it was there in 1917 on the Gollmar-Patterson Show and on other James Patterson shows from 1918 to 1921. In 1922 the show was called the Patterson's Trained Wild Animal Shows. From 1923 to 1925 it was called the Gentry-Patterson Shows.In the winter of 1925 / 1926 the wagon was sold to Floyd and Howard King. The King bros. had it on their Gentry Bros. Circus from 1926 to 1927, on their Walter L. Main Circus in 1928 and on their Cole Bros. World Toured Shows in 1929 and 1930 until they went bankrupt in Scottsville, KY. on Aug. 30, 1930. It was bought by H. C. Ingram and Ben Rutherford and shipped to their quarters in Peoria, ILL then later to the Venice Transportation Co. in East St. Louis, MO.
George Christy bought it in May of 1936 and moved it to his S. Houston, TX. winter quarters where it remained until 1948. In 1949 it was restored and sold to the Chicago Railroad Fair. It stayed there until 1952 when Norm Senhauser bought it.
Norm used it in various parades and at circus gatherings for years until he sold it to the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. in 1964. They donated it to the Circus World Museum where it was restored and painted an orange all over the body instead of just part of the sides as it had been for the last twenty years at least. The wagon is 13' long, 7'11" wide and weighs about 2 tons.
Norm and Bob Senhauser
This wagon is a rather unusual one with the twelve spoke wheels and different paintings on each side. the other side has a tiger painted on it. This wagon is generally called the Lion and Tiger tab.
Norm and Bob Senhauser
This wagon originated as the Kangaroo tab for the Gollmar Bros. Circus about 1910 and remained there through 1916. In 1917, James Patterson bought the Gollmar show thus moving this wagon into the possession of the Patterson-Gollmar Circus.From 1918 through 1921 it remained on Patterson Shows and in 1922 was on the Patterson trained Wild Animal Shows. From 1923 to 1925 it was on the Gentry-Patterson Shows and sold to Floyd and Howard King in the winter of 1925 / 1926.
The King Bros. had this wagon on their Gentry Bros. Circus in 1926-1927 then on their Walter L. Main Circus in 1928. In 1929 and 1930 it was on their Cole Bros. World Toured Shows until they went Bankrupt in Scottsville, KY. on Aug. 30, 1930.
It was then bought by Ben Rutherford and H.C. Ingram for their show out of Peoria, Ill. It went to the Venice Transportation Co. in East St. Louis, Mo. where it stayed for an unknown time. It was definitely in the Christy Bros. winter quarters in S. Houston, TX. by June of 1936 and remained there until 1948.
The wagon was restored and sold to the Chicgao Railroad Fair in 1949 and remained there through 1952 when Norm Senhauser bought it. Norm used it in parades and Circus Gatherings for years until he sold it to the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. in 1964. They donated it to the Circus World Museum where it was again restored and returned to the Kangaroo Tab. The wagon is 13'8" long, and 7'11" wide.
Norm and Bob Senhauser
Once it was given to the Circus World Museum, it was restored and is now referred to as the Kangaroo Tab.Norm and Bob Senhauser
The Sea Serpent tab was built by the Sullivan and Eagle wagon works around 1910 for the Sparks Circus where it remained until the winter of 1924 / 1925. It was then sold to Floyd and Howard King who used it on their Walter L. Main show in 1925, the Gentry Bros. Circus in 1926 and 1927, back on the Walter L. Main show in 1928 and in 1929 and 1930 it was on their Cole Bros. World Toured Shows.
After the King Bros. went bankrupt in Scottsville, KY. on Aug. 30, 1930, the wagon was bought by H.C. Ingram and Ben Rutherford who took it to Peoria, Ill. It was then sent to the Venice Transport Co. in E. St. Louis, MO. While the next few years are vague, the wagon was definitely in the Christy Bros. winter quarters by June of 1936.
It stayed in the Christy winter quarters from 1936 to 1948 when it was taken to a Chicago Fairgrounds. It stayed there from 19549 till 1951. In 1952, Norm Senhauser bought it and took it to his Urichsville, Ohio home. Norm kept if and had it in various parades and circus gatherings until he sold it to the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. which then donated it to the Circus World Museum. The wagon is 13'2" long, 10' tall, 7'11" wide and weighs about 3 tons.
Norm and Bob Senhauser
Once it was given to the Circus World Museum it was fully restored and returned to its former glory. This is the only wagon known to still exist from the Sparks Circus. To see some of an actual rebuild on this wagon, go to Tim Perkins website at http://perkyshome.blogspot.com/
Tim worked in the shop at the Circus World Museum for many years. He has photos, none of us could ever hope to see unless he shares them with us.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Show Printers
While we have all heard of the Big Companies like Strobridge, Donaldson, Enquirer. Erie, or Riverside, there were other show printers as well. These were all from 1902 as found in the New York Clipper.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Nov. / Dec. issue of Bandwagon
Hold your Horses....... Everyone Hold your Horses.... Here comes the elep..errr.. the Bandwagon. Fred Pfening Jr. and Fred Pfening III have absolutely outdone themselves. This is the most magnificent periodical in the business bar none. The Front cover utilizes a Christmas Greeting from the 1926 season of John Robinson as owned by the American Circus Corporation. Inside the 104 page issue ( YES, an unbelievable 104 pages ) you'll find a fascinating 65 page historical insight into the Cooper and Bailey shows eventual combine with P.T. Barnum featuring posters and letterheads not to be seen again any time soon. I was going to scan a couple other pages for you but this is just such a gem, you need to get your own copy... FAST.Single copies can be obtained by contacting Back Issues
2515 Dorset Road
Columbus, Ohio 43221
Heck, go to http://www.circushistory.org/ and become a member if you aren't already and get the six issues every year including the circus review issue coming up in March / April which reviews every show on the road in 2008. There isn't another publication in the world that is this complete in its coverage.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
War of the Words
This is from the September 26, 1903 New York Clipper where it very clearly points out that they are the Greatest Show on Earth while the Barnum & Bailey moniker has been the Greatest Show on Earth for years now. ( You can double click it to enlarge it if you want )James A. Bailey
In addition to owning the Greatest Show on Earth, Mr. Bailey had bought into the Adam Forepaugh show back in 1890. While his partners changed over the years, Mr. Bailey remained a very solid owner. By 1896, he had joined forces with the well established Sells Bros. Circus. By 1905, the show was up for sale at auction, but before the auction even began, it was announced that a purchaser had bought the complete show. That purchaser turned out to be James A. Bailey and the Ringling Bros. James Anthony Bailey died April 11, 1906. Mr. Bailey's widow then sold all interests in the Circus to the Ringling Bros. on October 22, 1907 thereby giving clear title to the Ringling Bros who now owned the three largest circuses travelling in America. The Ringlings also owned the largest collection of elephants anywhere with 24 elephants on the Ringling show, 17 on the Barnum & Bailey show and 15 on the Adam Forepaugh / Sells Bros. Show.
Barnum & Bailey in Europe
Another one from the Chris Berry collection as shown at the Big "E" last year.
Barnum & Bailey in Europe
This one is dated 1900. It is from the Chris Berry collection that was at the Big"E" last year.
Barnum & Bailey in Europe
Another great poster from the Chris Berry collection that was used in the amazing Poster exhibit at the Big "E" last year.It was explained to us at the convention that the way so many of these posters survived was that the Strobridge Litho Co. produced these for Barnum & Bailey and sent them to Europe but once they got there, Barnum & Bailey was prohibited from using them by some rule or law and had to order them from a European Company instead. Thus these were all returned to Strobridge and remained on their shelves for over 50 years until they closed and several circus collectors were able to acquire extensive collections.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Barnum & Bailey in Europe
This is one of the posters from the Chris Berry collection that was at the Big "E" last year.
Barnum & Bailey in Europe
There were two different series of postcards issued while Barnum & Bailey was overseas. They were discussed in great detail on Buckles blog about a year ago, maybe longer than that.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Sunday, February 08, 2009
Shows on the road in 1902
Below are a bunch of ads from some of the Shows on the road in 1902. They are all taken from the New York Clipper and should enlarge if you double click them. Ironically, the microfilm is in great condition but the microfilm reader is making lousy copies so I do apologize fro some of the poor quality. As you will see, many of the names are NOT very familiar.
Saturday, February 07, 2009
Shows on the road in 1902
As many of you know, the Gentry Bros. had four seperate units on the road for several years.
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