Ticket: Complimentary ticket to "P.T. Barnum's Roman Hippodrome" on pale orange card stock
1874 – 1875 (Date manufactured/created)
2 in H
X
3.75 in W
Complimentary ticket for P.T. Barnum's Roman Hippodrome, printed on a pale orange-pink card stock. Though undated, the ticket is from the brief period of Barnum's New York Hippodrome, which opened in April 1874 and closed at the end of 1875. The front of the ticket features a portrait of Barnum on the left. The remaining area of the ticket reads, "P. T. Barnum's / Roman / Hippodrome / Complimentary / Admit One" followed by the printed signature of C. [?] W. Fuller, who is names as general agent. The back of the ticket features an image of Roman warriors racing chariots in the hippodrome. Beneath the picture there is a small image of a train engine pulling three railroad cars.
Barnum is best known for his involvement with the Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth, but his circus ventures came about when he was in his 60s. The first show was called P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus. Railroads propelled the circus to success, making it easier to reach a number of locations, and the intake was significant. Barnum then opened the New York Hippodrome with similar acts. In the 1880s, he encountered competition from other circuses. A merger between Barnum’s show the Great London Show of Cooper, Bailey, and Hutchinson formed the Barnum and London Circus. Negotiations in 1887 formed the Barnum and Bailey circus. The name remained until 1919 when it became the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus.
Barnum is best known for his involvement with the Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth, but his circus ventures came about when he was in his 60s. The first show was called P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus. Railroads propelled the circus to success, making it easier to reach a number of locations, and the intake was significant. Barnum then opened the New York Hippodrome with similar acts. In the 1880s, he encountered competition from other circuses. A merger between Barnum’s show the Great London Show of Cooper, Bailey, and Hutchinson formed the Barnum and London Circus. Negotiations in 1887 formed the Barnum and Bailey circus. The name remained until 1919 when it became the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus.
El 1988.022.003