Booklet: "History of Animals and Leading Curiosities . . ." featuring Jumbo on cover
P.T. Barnum's Greatest Show On Earth, The Great London Circus, And Sanger's Royal British Menagerie (associated with)
New York Popular Publishing Co. (created by)
New York Popular Publishing Co. (created by)
1882 – 1885 (Date manufactured/created)
Booklet entitled "History of Animals," featuring a color illustration of Jumbo the Elephant on the front cover. Jumbo's trainer, Matthew Scott, is shown standing next to the elephant's hind leg, barely visible due to the elephant's exaggerated size. The booklet's full title is “History of Animals and Leading Curiosities within the P. T. Barnum and London Shows Combined." It was published at the time of Barnum's partnership with James A. Bailey, and J. L. Hutchinson. The celebrity pachyderm Jumbo was part of Barnum’s shows between 1882 and 1885, where this souvenir booklet would have been sold to circus-goers. The 32-page booklet contains detailed text as well as color Illustrations including: a giraffe, tigers, a rhino, a camel, a zebra, a polar bear, nubian buffalo, bears, antelope, an elephant, lions, a leopard, an alligator, and "The Happy Family" display of predators and prey. (The predators were well fed so as not to attack the prey animals.)
Today we take for color printing for granted, but at the time this was produced, colored illustrations were less common, so this little booklet would have been especially appealing to purchase. The graphic design of the cover, with Jumbo consuming most of the space, is also visually exciting and adds to the appeal. The main title is composed of an elaborate font with graduated letters, large at the sides and small in the center, and shaded from red to grey-green. Subtitles fill the side spaces around the dark grey elephant. At the bottom in bold black lettering are the words "Ninth Monster Show." Pale red and light green coloring enlivens the background.
P. T. Barnum is best known today for the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth, but his circus ventures did not come about until he was in his early 60s. His first circus, in the early 1870s, was called P. T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus. Barnum subsequently opened the New York Hippodrome with similar acts. In the 1880s, competition from other circuses increased. A merger between Barnum’s show and the Great London Show of Cooper, Bailey, and Hutchinson formed the circus called Barnum & London. America's new and ever-growing railroad system propelled the circus to success, making it possible to add destinations and reach distant locations, as well as transport many more circus wagons, animals, equipment, tent canvas, performers and support staff. Barnum's partnership with James A. Bailey in 1887 formed Barnum & Bailey, which continued to be managed by Bailey after Barnum's death in 1891. After Bailey's death in 1906, the Ringling Brothers bought Barnum & Bailey and operated it separately from their own circus. In 1919 the two were combined to form Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth. That circus gave its final performance on May 21, 2017.
Today we take for color printing for granted, but at the time this was produced, colored illustrations were less common, so this little booklet would have been especially appealing to purchase. The graphic design of the cover, with Jumbo consuming most of the space, is also visually exciting and adds to the appeal. The main title is composed of an elaborate font with graduated letters, large at the sides and small in the center, and shaded from red to grey-green. Subtitles fill the side spaces around the dark grey elephant. At the bottom in bold black lettering are the words "Ninth Monster Show." Pale red and light green coloring enlivens the background.
P. T. Barnum is best known today for the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth, but his circus ventures did not come about until he was in his early 60s. His first circus, in the early 1870s, was called P. T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus. Barnum subsequently opened the New York Hippodrome with similar acts. In the 1880s, competition from other circuses increased. A merger between Barnum’s show and the Great London Show of Cooper, Bailey, and Hutchinson formed the circus called Barnum & London. America's new and ever-growing railroad system propelled the circus to success, making it possible to add destinations and reach distant locations, as well as transport many more circus wagons, animals, equipment, tent canvas, performers and support staff. Barnum's partnership with James A. Bailey in 1887 formed Barnum & Bailey, which continued to be managed by Bailey after Barnum's death in 1891. After Bailey's death in 1906, the Ringling Brothers bought Barnum & Bailey and operated it separately from their own circus. In 1919 the two were combined to form Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth. That circus gave its final performance on May 21, 2017.
T 2014.045.001