Ticket: "Complimentary ticket to P.T. Barnum's Roman Hippodrome, June 27, 1874"
June 27 1874 (Date manufactured/created)
Paper Documentary Artifact
8 in H
X
5 in W
Complimentary ticket for P.T. Barnum's Roman Hippodrome, dated June 27, 1874. The ticket is in the form of an invitation on paper rather than a small rectangle of card stock like most tickets. This page is divided in two by a dotted line, the upper portion being the "ticket" part and the lower portion printed with Barnum's message and a line for the recipient's name. This ticket was never used, as the recipient line is blank. The upper part states: "P. T. Barnum's Roman Hippodrome / Complimentary / Admit Two / To the Grand Orchestra." Barnum's printed signature is included beneath. In the upper left corner there is an oval stamp in green ink that reads "P. T. Barnum Bridgeport Ct. June 27, 1874." In the lower portion of the page, below the dotted line, the text reads "To Mr. ___________ / With the compliments of / Respectfully yours," also followed by Barnum's printed signature. In the lower lefthand corner the text reads "Bridgeport, June 26, 1874," the day previous to the date in the green stamp. The reverse side is blank but shows that it was folded in thirds. Barnum's Roman Hippodrome was presented in the newly constructed New York Hippodrome, which opened in April 1874, so this ticket dates from soon after it had opened. (The Hippodrome location would later become the site of Madison Square Garden.)
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. Prior to this time, he was the proprietor of the American Museum located in Lower Manhattan in New York City. His first circus, in the early 1870s, was called P. T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus. Barnum subsequently opened the Roman Hippodrome in New York 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 and London. 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. This circus gave its final performance on May 21, 2017.
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. Prior to this time, he was the proprietor of the American Museum located in Lower Manhattan in New York City. His first circus, in the early 1870s, was called P. T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus. Barnum subsequently opened the Roman Hippodrome in New York 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 and London. 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. This circus gave its final performance on May 21, 2017.
A Gift of the Discovery Museum, Bridgeport, Connecticut
2003.009.036