Barnum

by Robert Wilson

  18. S&T (1873 ed.), p. 766.

  19. S&T, p. 685; PTB, pp. 228–29.

  20. S&T, pp. 686–87; S&T (1873 ed.), pp. 769–74.

  SEVENTEEN: MARRIAGE BONDS

  1. Emerson, “The Barnums,” p. 219.

  2. S&T (1873 ed.), pp. 841–43; PTB, pp. 228, 249, 393n10; SL, pp. 178–79, PTB to John Greenwood Jr. (?), Dec. 19, 1873, and to George H. Emerson, Feb. 21, 1874.

  3. Emerson, “The Barnums,” pp. 215–20; quote beginning “perhaps causing her to exaggerate” is on p. 219.

  4. Kunhardts, pp. 238–39. The Kunhardts say that Mary K. Witkowski, then of the Bridgeport Public Library, told them of a conversation she had with a cousin of Nancy’s that led them to discover the marriage certificate in London (348n).

  5. S&T (1875 ed.), pp. 850–64. In 1870 parts of Fairfield, including Mountain Grove Cemetery, much of Seaside Park, and the properties where Barnum’s mansions were, had been, or would be, were annexed by the city of Bridgeport.

  6. Ibid., pp. 851, 863, 867; New York Herald, Sept. 17, 1874; PTB, p. 253; New-York Tribune, Sept. 17, 1874.

  EIGHTEEN: EXCITEMENT, PEPPER, & MUSTARD

  1. S&T, pp. 697–98; S&T (1875 ed.), pp. 849–50.

  2. New York Herald, April 26, 1874; New-York Tribune, May 30, 1874.

  3. SL, p. 180, PTB to Mrs. Abel C. Thomas, May 22, 1874.

  4. Andrew Hoffman, Inventing Mark Twain (New York: William Morrow, 1997), p. 496.

  5. New-York Tribune, Feb. 5, 1872.

  6. Twain, Collected Tales, Sketches, Speeches, & Essays, pp. 573–77.

  7. SL, pp. 182–83, PTB to Samuel L. Clemens, July 16, 1874, and July 31, 1874.

  8. Ibid., pp. 193 and 195, PTB to Samuel L. Clemens, Mar. 24, 1875, and Oct. 2, 1875.

  9. See, for example, SL, pp. 188–91, 196–98, PTB to Samuel L. Clemens, Jan. 19, 1875, and Mar. 20, 1876.

  10. SL, pp. 202, 204, 205, PTB to Samuel L. Clemens, Oct. 10, 1877, Jan. 10, 1878, and Jan. 14, 1878.

  11. PTB, p. 251.

  12. S&T, pp. 710–23; PTB, pp. 263–65.

  13. S&T, p. 720.

  14. Ibid., pp. 727–30.

  15. Ibid., pp. 725–26.

  16. PTB, p. 32.

  17. S&T, pp. 731–34; PTB, pp. 270–73; SL, pp. 203, 214–15, PTB to Whitelaw Reid, Jan. 10, 1878, and to Joseph Roswell Hawley, Nov. 9, [1880].

  18. S&T, pp. 736–40; PTB, pp. 235–37; Edward O’Reilly, “Henry Bergh: Angel in Top Hat or the Great Meddler?,” From the Stacks (blog), New-York Historical Society, Mar. 21, 2012, http://blog.nyhistory.org/henry-bergh-angel-in-top-hat-or-the-great-meddler/.

  19. S&T, p. 737; PTB, p. 238; New-York Times, Mar. 17, 1888.

  20. The Kunhardts, p. 269, quote Bergh as saying, “Whether . . . it is humane and praiseworthy to rescue . . . rare animals from the . . . jungle . . . and drag them through Christian lands to have peanuts and tobacco thrown at them by gaping crowds and then perish as they mostly do . . . drowned, shot, or burned—is at least open to question.”

  NINETEEN: AND BAILEY

  1. S&T, p. 741, n2.

  2. New-York Times, Apr. 19, 1891.

  3. S&T, pp. 742–43; PTB, pp. 285–86.

  4. New-York Tribune, Nov. 24, 1880; New-York Times, Dec. 14, 1880; PTB, p. 273; S&T, pp. 743–44.

  5. New-York Tribune, Mar. 27 and 29, 1881; New York Herald, Mar. 29, 1881; S&T, p. 745.

  6. SL, p. 217, PTB to James A. Garfield, Mar. 12, 1881; S&T, pp. 747–48.

  7. S&T, pp. 748, 753; PTB, p. 275.

  8. PTB, pp. 276, 285.

  9. Conklin, The Ways of the Circus, pp. 295–97; Richard E. Conover, The Affairs of James A. Bailey: New Revelations on the Career of the World’s Most Successful Showman, pamphlet (Xenia, OH: Self-published, 1957), pp. 1–3, 17.

  10. Conklin, The Ways of the Circus, p. 299.

  11. SL, pp. 297–98, PTB to James A. Bailey, July 5, 1888.

  12. SL, p. 264, PTB to Mrs. James A. Bailey, July 5, 1885. Bailey married Ruth Louisa McCaddon of Zanesville, Ohio, in 1868.

  13. Bartlett, Wild Animals in Captivity, pp. 45–49; S&T, pp. 756–57; PTB, pp. 291–92. In an article that appeared shortly after Barnum’s death, Bailey, or perhaps a circus publicity agent speaking for him, took credit for having found and purchased Jumbo. A publicity effort was made after Barnum’s death to downplay his role in Barnum & Bailey (New-York Times, Apr. 19, 1891).

  14. Ruskin, The Works of John Ruskin, vol. 34, p. 561.

  15. S&T, pp. 757–58; New-York Tribune, Mar. 11, 1882.

  16. S&T, p. 759.

  17. Sun (New York), Apr. 10, 1882.

  18. Ibid. The distance between the park and the docks is just over four miles.

  19. New-York Tribune, Apr. 10, 1882.

  20. New-York Tribune, Apr. 9, 10, and 11, 1882.

  21. S&T, p. 760, and image of an ad between pp. 758 and 759.

  22. New-York Times, Apr. 19, 1891; Evening Star (Washington, D.C.), Sept. 19, 1885; S&T, pp. 785–86.

  23. New-York Tribune, Sept. 17, 1885; SL, pp. 241, 265, letter and telegram to Henry A. Ward, Oct. 9, 1883, and Sept. 17, 1885.

  24. Kunhardts, p. 301. A team led by David Attenborough for a BBC documentary studied the skeleton and concluded that Jumbo had been only 10.5 feet tall and that his bones showed the ill effects of carrying so many children on his back—often eight or nine at a time (Sun [U.K.], Dec. 10, 2017).

  25. SL, p. 271, PTB to James A. Bailey, Oct. 12, 1885.

  26. S&T, pp. 787–90; PTB, p. 312.

  TWENTY: LAST YEARS

  1. S&T, pp. 799–801; SL, p. 311, PTB to James A. Bailey, Apr. 14, 1889.

  2. S&T, pp. 744, 764, 790; New-York Tribune, July 20, 1883; Sun (New York), July 23, 1883; Lehman, Becoming Tom Thumb, pp. 208–9.

  3. SL, p. 311, PTB to James A. Bailey, Apr. 14, 1889.

  4. SL, p. 328, PTB to James A. Bailey, Aug. 24, 1890; PTB, p. 115; Barnum, Funny Stories, p. 359.

  5. PTB, pp. 281–82.

  6. Ibid., pp. 289–90.

  7. Ibid., 254–55.

  8. SL, pp. 225, 279, 284, 288, 292, PTB to Carrie Bailey, Apr. 24, 1882; Lucy A. Thomas, July 10, 1886; Henry Rennell, Mar. 1, July 27, and Sept. 12, 1887.

  9. PTB, pp. 316–17.

  10. Ibid., pp. 279–80, 325.

  11. Barnum also gave much smaller amounts to St. Lawrence University in upstate New York and Lombard College in Ohio. PTB, pp. 53–54, 57–58; SL, pp. 251–52, PTB to Rev. E. H. Capen, June 12, 1884.

  12. Sun (New York), cited in Indianapolis Journal, Oct. 14, 1889.

  13. Barnum, Funny Stories, p. 359.

  14. Conklin, The Ways of the Circus, p. 253.

  15. Nancy Barnum, S&T, p. 817.

  16. Barnum, Funny Stories, pp. 366–67.

  17. Sporting Times (London), Dec. 14, 1889.

  18. Licensed Victuallers’ Mirror (London), Dec. 31, 1889.

  19. Barnum, Funny Stories, p. 367.

  20. Ibid., p. v.

  21. New-York Tribune, Mar. 15, 1891; SL, pp. 319–21, PTB to James A. Bailey, Feb. 22 and 26, 1890; S&T, pp. 817–18. At Barnum’s request, Nancy wrote “Last Chapter” for his autobiography after his death.

  22. S&T, pp. 811–12; Kunhardts, p. 328.

  23. S&T, p. 818.

  24. Ibid., pp. 818–19.

  25. Ibid., pp. 819, 821; PTB, pp. 325–26.

  26. New-York Tribune, Mar. 15, 1891; Newtown (CT) Bee, Apr. 10, 1891.

  27. S&T, pp. 821–22.

  28. New-York Times, Apr. 8, 1891; Times (London), Apr. 8, 1891.

  29. Newtown (CT) Bee, Apr. 10, 1891; Sun (New York), Apr. 10 and 11, 1891.

  30. New-York Tribune, Apr. 11, 1891.

  INDEX

  A note about the index: The pages referenced in this index refer to the page numbers in the print edition. Clicking on a page number will take you to the ebook location that corresponds to the beginning of that page in the print edition. For a comprehensive list of locations of any word or phrase, use your reading system’s search fun
ction.

  Across the Atlantic (Lewis), 1, 182

  Adelaide, Queen Dowager of England, 92, 103, 124, 306n14

  Adventures of an Adventurer (Barnum), 50, 167, 301n11

  advertising, 36, 47, 74, 186

  Barnum and, 22, 24, 202, 234, 245, 250–51, 257

  Jenny Lind campaign, 132–35

  Tom Thumb campaign, 80, 92

  Agra, Zalumma, 222

  Åhmansson, Josephine, 129

  Albert, Prince Consort, 89, 90, 124

  Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, 91, 195–96, 265, 315n6

  American Crystal Palace, 166–67

  American Museum, N.Y.C., 1–2, 4, 6–7, 11, 29, 50–57, 75, 94–95, 118, 162, 177, 182, 188, 302n17

  Barnum’s marketing strategy, 140–41

  Barnum’s memorable line about, 52

  British royalty visit, 195–96

  Civil War dramas and exhibits, 200

  Commodore Nutt at, 201–2

  Confederate arson and fires at, 209–14

  curiosities and exhibits, 6, 50, 52, 75, 95, 178–79, 211, 218, 222

  educational appeal, 51–52, 55, 56–57

  employees at the time of the fire, 213

  Fejee Mermaid at, 1–3, 7, 58–68

  Greenwood, Butler, and, 177, 188, 193

  Happy Family exhibition, 98, 193, 218

  Hitchcock and, 77, 110, 111

  humorist’s description of, 55–56

  Jeff. Davis in petticoats, 210, 211, 214

  Lecture Room, 4–5, 57, 76, 139–41, 210, 218

  menagerie, 193, 211, 218–19, 222

  rebuilding, 213, 217–19, 317n16

  renovations, 139–40, 142, 160, 193, 309n1

  revenue, 57, 188

  “temple of moral entertainment,” 139, 140–41, 142, 309n5

  Tom Thumb at, 74, 76, 111, 201–2

  Twain and, 246

  wax figure of Rebel arsonist at, 210

  “What Is It?” exhibit, 193–96

  American Museum of Natural History, 270

  American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), 254, 275

  Annapolis, Md., near-lynching in, 46

  Anthony, Susan B., 221, 250

  “Art of Money-Getting, The” (Barnum lecture), 185–87

  Astor, John Jacob, III, 205

  Astor House, N.Y.C., 54, 184, 196, 197, 212–13, 316n4

  Attenborough, David, 321n24

  automatons, 37, 38, 94–95, 300n16

  Bachman, John, 66, 67

  Bailey, James, 257–270, 273, 274, 281, 284, 285, 320n13

  Baring Brothers Bank, 133, 152, 153

  Barnum, Charity Hallett (wife), 20–21, 28, 29, 44, 49, 57, 67, 70, 75, 105, 107–12, 116, 173, 183, 185, 230, 242

  as abolitionist, 199

  Barnum, temperance, and, 119–20

  Barnum mocking in letters, 109

  Barnum’s bankruptcy and, 177, 178, 180, 191

  death of, 239–40, 243

  England trip (1844), 99–100

  funeral, 240–41

  health of, 115–16, 187, 238–41

  Lind and, 150, 158

  Lindencroft and, 190

  marriage of, 20–21

  New York town house and, 220, 221

  Niagara Falls trip, 115–16

  Barnum, Ephraim (grandfather), 11

  Barnum, Frances (daughter), 75, 99

  Barnum, Irena Taylor (mother), 11, 17, 19, 21

  Barnum, Nancy Fish (wife), 239–43, 247–48, 250, 252, 260, 274–76, 278, 280–86, 318n4, 322n21

  Barnum, P[hineas] T[aylor], 302n21

  acquiring curiosities and exhibits, 1–2, 55, 58, 64, 66, 68, 94–95, 97–98, 118, 161, 178, 193, 201, 220, 232–33, 267, 272, 307n18

  aging and last years, 264, 272–86

  ambitions of, 12, 15, 19, 125

  American character of, 1, 7, 8, 93, 98, 170–71, 181

  as American symbol, 181–82

  appearance, 143, 157, 196

  as author, 4, 6, 12, 50, 95, 96, 98, 102, 109–10, 167–72, 226–29, 274, 275, 281 (see also specific works)

  background and childhood, 7, 9–19

  Bailey and, 258–70, 273, 284

  birth of, 9

  black enfranchisement and, 214–17

  business advice by, 185–87, 220, 230, 314n25

  as businessman, 4, 6–7, 14, 19–20, 29, 47–48, 82, 118, 160–72, 224–30, 241, 244

  as businessman, bankruptcy, and recovery, 173–91, 238

  “Celebrities at Home” description, 252

  childhood joke on, 10, 15–16, 53

  children born, 28, 44, 75, 108

  as “The Children’s Friend,” 274–75

  circuses and, 4, 5, 161–63, 232–38, 240, 244–45, 249, 250, 266–71, 278–81, 285–86

  Civil War and, 4, 192, 198–200, 214

  Colorado trip (1872), 236

  criticism of, 3, 151, 153, 154, 157, 171, 181–82

  death of, 9, 283–84

  death of daughter, Frances, 99

  death of daughter, Pauline, 252

  death of grandmother, 17

  death of wife, Charity, 239–40

  deaths of friends, 273–74

  early jobs and businesses, 13–23

  earnings and wealth, 6, 44, 57, 82, 87, 92, 98, 100, 105, 123, 159, 174–75, 183, 185, 187, 261

  education and cleverness, 12

  energy, 96, 98, 118, 187, 188, 233, 254

  in England, 84–93, 95–99, 109–11, 252, 260–61, 274, 278–81

  in Europe, 94–95, 104–5, 108–9, 239

  exhibiting animals and birds, 161–63, 231, 232, 233, 236–37, 239, 244, 245, 249, 251, 254–56, 269, 273, 279

  fabrications, 72–74 (see also humbug)

  faithful employees (Busy B’s), 261–62, 283

  fame, 5, 98, 100–101, 181, 182

  father’s death and family debt, 17

  Fejee Mermaid, 7, 58–68, 103, 186

  finds direction for his life, 29, 30

  fires and devastation, 184, 209–13, 215, 217–18, 221–24, 227, 237, 241, 272–73, 278

  funeral and burial, 285–86

  generosity of, 195, 220–21

  grandfather’s influence on, 11, 12–13

  hard times, support during, 179–80

  Heth affair, 30–43, 44, 50, 58, 195, 300n7, 300n13

  home (Iranistan), 111–15, 117–18, 119, 125, 167, 176, 184

  home (Lindencroft), 189–90, 199, 200–201, 220

  home (Manhattan town house), 220–21, 239, 242

  home (Marina), 282, 284, 285

  home (Waldemere), 225–26, 232, 238, 241, 242, 243, 246, 247, 250, 252, 260–61, 282, 319n5

  humbug and, 5–6, 38, 42, 120–22, 127, 171, 186, 216, 228–30

  illness of 1881, 259, 260

  internal conflicts of, 107, 109–10, 230

  Jumbo and, 264–70, 320n13, 321n18

  Kansas buffalo hunt, 232

  land deals and real-estate development, 4, 107–8, 173–75, 188, 225, 226, 234, 236, 262

  last birthday, 282

  legal troubles, 175

  lessons of human nature, 14, 18, 22–23

  Lincoln and, 192, 196–99, 202

  Lind and, 123–59

  living on “excitement, pepper, & mustard,” 245–46

  as local hero, 25–26, 299n29

  lotteries of, 15, 17–18, 22–23, 28–29

  married to Charity Hallett, 20–21

  married to Nancy Fish, 240–43, 318n4

  missteps, early career, 3, 4, 30, 33, 43

  moral entertainment and, 139–43, 188, 236, 309n5

  moral evolution of, 5, 127, 171, 172, 190, 197

  as newspaper publisher, 23–24, 28–29, 165–66, 246

  Niagara Falls trips, 115–16, 230, 250

  personality and character, 82, 98–99, 100–101, 102, 165, 180, 190, 233–34, 237, 241, 253–54, 283

  persona of, 50, 167

  philanthropy of, 153–54, 175, 1
90–91, 226, 276–78, 322n11

  philosophical, political, and moral views, 3, 4, 5–6, 45, 175, 200, 221, 253

  political office and, 4, 101–2, 214–17, 249–50, 252–54, 312n16

  as promoter or self-promoter, 4, 132, 143, 187

  publicity and, 2–3, 22, 33–34

  as public speaker, 4, 12, 120, 123, 142–43, 145–46, 147–48, 185–87, 202, 212, 220, 226, 231, 234, 236, 250, 282, 314n25

  Queen Victoria and, 86, 89–92

  racial views of, 42–43, 48, 49, 101, 102, 193–96, 197–98, 214, 300n13

  religion and faith, 16–17, 18, 23, 24–25, 82, 190, 200, 252, 282

  as Republican, 197–98, 214, 249, 252–53

  reputation, 2, 3, 7–8, 33, 41, 43, 127, 171, 216

  retirement attempt, 224–30, 232, 234

  as self-made man, 171

  as showman, 3, 4, 6, 7, 26–27, 29, 30, 33–34, 41, 42, 44–50, 57, 96, 118, 120–22, 153, 166, 182, 194, 201, 217–18, 231–36, 244–46, 250–52, 264–70, 279

  siblings, 11

  smallpox of, 19, 21

  social class and, 153

  temperance and, 4, 102, 118–20, 123, 140, 200, 226, 241, 249, 252

  Tom Thumb and, 71–106, 192, 204–8

  travels with John Fish (1869), 230–32

  voice of, 186, 314n23

  “Yankee cuteness,” 98, 179

  Barnum, Philo (brother), 39, 71, 72, 107, 116, 184

  Barnum, Philo (father), 11, 12, 16, 17

  Barnum, William H. (cousin), 215–17, 316n10

  Barnum & Bailey Circus, 5, 261, 264, 266–71, 278–81, 285–86

  as Barnum & London Circus, 259–60, 261, 264–70

  Barnum’s death and, 284, 285

  Barnum’s last visit to, 282–83

  fire and, 272–73

  The Greatest Show on Earth, 5, 268, 278, 281

  Johnson’s act in, 194–95

  Jumbo and, 266–70, 320n13

  in London (1889), 278–81

  at Madison Square Garden, 259, 260, 268, 281, 284, 285–86

  menagerie of, 272–73, 279, 280, 286

  “Nero, or the Destruction of Rome,” 280–81, 285

  Barnum & Bailey’s Winter Quarters, 258–59, 272–73, 284

  Barnum and Van Amburgh Museum and Menagerie Company, 219–20

  “Barnum Days,” 5

  Barnum Museum, 277

  “Barnum on His Feet Again” (pamphlet), 188

  Barnum’s Advance Courier, 246

  Barnum’s American Centennial, 250–51

  Barnum’s Grand Scientific and Musical Theatre, 45, 47

  Barnum’s Museum, Circus, and Mammoth Amphitheatre, 202, 203