From David Reddy

I am sending this to as many circus & carnival fans as I can. Outdoor Amusement Business Assn. needs your help in contacting your U. S. House of Representative members & your U. S. Senators immediately about legislation intended to temper or stop the Department of Labor's rule that could make the use of foreign labor next to impossible. Please go to the following website: www.carnivalwarehouse.com/ & @ the top click the message board category & then when the page comes up; click Amusement Industry Discussion & scan down to the topic of URGENT REQUEST FROM YOUR OABA & then read carefully. Please do what is requested of you as this is important for the major circuses, carnivals, as well as tourist resorts, amusement parks & the fishing industry in the Gulf in the U. S.

Thanks for helping,

David Reddy

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

Here are a few photos all identified as Baton Rouge, LA. 1930. I looked the date up in the Route Book. This is the only photo that says it is an Eddie Jackson Photo. I am then "Assuming" the rest of these are Eddie Jackson photos as well.

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

That is one heavy wagon. Looks like stringers for the seating on the bottom.

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

The Goliath wagon is written on here. I'm not familiar with the transportation of Goliath. I know its been discussed in the Bandwagons. I'm assuming there was some water tank usage somehow.

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

The lot. What a show!

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

Horse power was a valuable asset.

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

It looks like some of the tableau cages in the line-up.

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

It looks to me like the elephant line is turned in a different direction. Was this done to fit the lot perhaps?

RBBB in Baton Rouge Oct. 3, 1930

The open air menagerie is set-up.

Coming Soon!!!!!

The latest edition of the Bandwagon is arriving on doorsteps as we speak.

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Here's a few photos from Ken Maynard's Wild West Show. As most of you know, Ken Maynard bought a lot of circus equipment from George Christy. These photos are all taken on May 2, 1936 in Van Nuys, California. Unfortunately, I don't know who the origianl photographer was.

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Ken Maynard's Wild West Show

Safari / Jumbo II

Here's a photo from Dave Price of Safari in 1935 on the Cole Bros. Circus. Note the handler is just about to eye level with the elephant.

Safari / Jumbo II

This classic photo shows Safari with elephant boss Eddie Allen on the 1935 Cole Bros. Circus. This photo is from the Don Smith collection. I don't know if's the angle of the photo or not but the Handler is much shorter in this photo than the first one.

Safari / Jumbo II

Here's just a little bit different photo than what you see all the time. This was taken in 1935 in Los Angeles by Hugh McGill.

For Wade Burck

Hey Wade, this photo isn't the clearest one, I know, but taken in 1935 on the Cole Bros. Circus you can see Safari / Jumbo II walking with the same girth strap that was on the postcards with Fritz.

More Questions.

This is a J.W. Beggs photo of the COLUMBIA Bandwagon that was built in 1902 for the Adam Forepaugh - Sells Bros. Circus. This photo was taken in 1916. Soooooooooo......... Checkout the next photo.

Need some help!

This is obviously different. The carvings are similiar but different enough. All I know about this, is what is written on the card. Who built this one, Sullivan and Eagle? What happened to it?

Coming to a town near you!

Can you hear that Brad? Can you hear it? That's the sound of the greatest edition of the Circus Historical Society's Bandwagon coming to a town near you. Strike up the Band, Merle.

Just wait till you see this one !!!!!!!!!!!!

Starback seat from Hal Guyon Jr.

Here's a couple pictures of the starback seat that Hal Guyon got from the International Circus Hall of Fame in Peru, IN.

Starback seat from Hal Guyon Jr.

WAIT!

WAIT..........WAIT..........You've heard about it, seen it, wanted it and it's coming...... to YOU! The latest issue of the Circus Historical Society's Bandwagon was mailed to you TODAY!

Curtis seat wagons

Here are three great photos of the Cap Curtis seat wagons. These were taken in the West Baden, IN. winter quarters of the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus around 1920. Sadly, there's no credit to who the photographer was. Our Circus Model Builder friends should really enjoy these.

If you visit the International Circus Hall of Fame in Peru, Indiana and you are lucky enough to ever catch the gift shop open, you can buy one of these seats for $20.00 or $25.00 I believe. They have taken the barn that was built out of these down, saved all the lumber and are now cutting them into one seat sections as an actual souvenior from the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus.

Curtis seat wagons

Curtis seat wagons

Cottage Cages

I'm going to be looking into the cottage cages, their rise and fall if you will, their creative development, their circus owners and their demise as one of the CHS Convention presentations. While the John Robinson 10 Big Shows is renowned in the circus world for the most elaborate configurations of all the cottage roofed vessels, they weren't the only ones to have them and they weren't the first ones either. They did have the BEST and the MOST however.

One of the hardest things in doing a research project like this is acquiring every photo that you can find, sorting out what you have and don't have, and then wondering what's out there you never even knew about. The study of these vessels has been greatly enhanced with the discovery of a couple postcards showing different angles, a couple different wagons on other shows to a huge find on eBay when one of the John Robinson cages was found in a photo that had not been found before. This picture was taken on the John Robinson 10 Big Shows. It was part of the Richard Conover collection.

If any of the readers has any cottage roofed vessels in their photo collections ( doesn't have to be a cage ) could you please share with me your photos for this presentation and eventual Bandwagon article? Naturally whoever sends anything gets all the credits. Feel free to email me at 5Tigeract@gmail.com

Cottage Cages

This is the Al G. Barnes Circus in 1919. This Charles Kitto photo was previously published in the Bandwagon's March / April 1964 edition on page 15.

Cottage Cages

This little cage appeared on the Norris and Rowe Circus around 1909. - Photo is courtesy of Fred Dahlinger Jr.

Cottage Cages

Built in the winter quarters of the Pawnee Bill Show in 1901 - this photo was taken by Harry Bock.

Cottage Cages

This little cage is found loaded on the Veal Bros. Carnival train in 1922 near Macon, GA. Frank Farrell took the photograph.

Cottage Cages

This picture was taken on the Andrew Downie owned Walter L. Main Circus. You can clearly see the shingled roof.

Cottage Cages

This is the Yankee Robinson ticket wagon circa 1906 - 1909. As you can see, there is NO way anyone could stand up inside of this one.

Columbia Bandwagon

The Columbia Bandwagon was built by the Bode Wagon Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio around 1902. Over the years of service, it has been modified on more than one occassion. Steve Flint brought to my attention the other night the changes in the back arch carving in particular.

Just since I started posting these, I found a photo in Chappie Fox's book "Horse Drawn Wagon Collection" on page 62 with a carving that apparently was added at CWM and then later removed as it isn't in any other photograph. The photo above is credited as being taken on the Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1912 in Long Branch, New Jersey. Please note the wagon body is dark.

Columbia Bandwagon

Here is a J.W. Beggs photo that is marked 1916. Notice the wagon body is white now.

Columbia Bandwagon

Taken on the Christy Bros. Circus in the late 1920's, this photo clearly shows the small pass through door on the back which later gets turned into one hinged unit on top and two doors on the bottom that swing open as seen in one of the photos below. Please note the body is dark again.

Columbia Bandwagon

Here is the Columbia in 1934 after being sold by George Christy to the new Cole Bros. Circus. Note that the body is dark, not white.

Columbia Bandwagon

Taken in 1936 on the Cole Bros. Circus by Bob Good, you should note at this point the furthest rear carving of the lady has an arch over her as well as a couple triangle carvings above the arch. Please note that the section towards the front above the trunk is solid. No door is there.

Columbia Bandwagon

Here is the Columbia in 1937 on the Cole Bros. Circus. This is from the Melvin collection. Just a year later and now the arch in back is gone, the triangles are gone and the lady has now been moved up higher on the wagon. The front end is still solid.

Columbia Bandwagon

Here's a good view of the Columbia being used as a ticket wagon. This photo was taken July 1, 1940 in Jamestown, NY. It is a Wm. Koford photo. Note the addition of the Grand Stand Tickets carving in the upper rear corner beside the carving of the ladies head. Also note towards the front, the steps are going up to a door that has now been cut into the side of the wagon.

Columbia Bandwagon

Photographed here in 1946 on the Cole Bros. Circus, the wheels have been changed to the carnie style wheels and also moved the back axle closer to the front. Notice the steps going up to the door now. If you look real close, you can see the wide range of colors on the carvings now.

Columbia Bandwagon

Here is the Columbia Bandwagon at the Circus World Museum in the early 1960's. According to Chappie Fox's book "Horse Drawn Wagon Collection" on Page 63, the Columbia was the first wagon ever obtained by CWM before CWM ever opened with the founding father John M. Kelley getting it from the Cole Bros. Circus in 1954.

Columbia Bandwagon

Taken in 2009 at the Milwaukee Parade, you can clearly see there is just the one main arch in the middle now.

RBBB Mack truck # 234 ( from Steve Flint )

Circus Model Builder, Circus Fan, Circus Historian and CWM volunteer Stephen T. Flint of Janesville, Wisconsin is not only a great model builder and good friend, Steve is the leading authority on the mack trucks in the RBBB blanket of shows. Steve admits to not having written about them as "I'm not a writer" comes up on several occassions but he is a dedicated researcher and historian and has established the true background and the subsequent change overs that have muddied many a field of circus history in the past.

The following is just a small example of one of the RBBB Mack Trucks which came about from a photo I posted of it in use the other day. Thanks Steve for all your great work!

RBBB Mack truck # 234 ( from Steve Flint )

This particular vehicle is a 1925 Mack AC4 purchased and put in use by RBBB in 1936. It replaced the Pierce-Arrow unit and received the number and the box that was on the old P-A. In 1942 the Mack 4 cylinder gas engine was replaced with a Cummins diesel and air assist brakes were also installed.

RBBB Mack truck # 234 ( from Steve Flint )

The seasons 1943 and 1944 found it stored in the Sarasota WQ's.

In 1945 the double stakedriving unit from the old #107 RBBB Stakedriver replaced the box body as evidenced in this Gordon Carver photo.

RBBB Mack truck # 234 ( from Steve Flint )

Once replaced by the White Army 1/2 Track #250 unit in 1949, a large box was added to the Mack. It was used on RBBB thru 1950. At that it was replaced by a new Mack LJ #234 using the tank from the old AC4 #231 Mack. In 1951 this truck was sold to Royal American Shows and re-numbered #T-21. It was used by RAS thru the 1959 season. It eventually went to Tommy White for restoration.