On March 18, 1881 the Barnum and Bailey Circus debuted in New York City. Over the years, Barnum had many interesting people who worked for him.
P.T. Barnum is most famous for his circus known as the Greatest Show on Earth. But he also made a lot of money off unusual people known as “human curiousities” or more cruelly, “freaks”. Some toured with the circus and others were attractions at his American Museum in New York City. Barnum paid them well and some became rich. Here are some of the more interesting ones. I have left out Tom Thumb and Chang and Eng because I did separate articles on them.
- Joice Heth – George Washington’s Nursemaid
Barnum claimed she was 161 years old. She would sing hymns and tell stories about Washington as a child. In 1836, as he had promised, Barnum allowed an autopsy witnessed by 1,500. The doctor determined she was about 79.
- Fedor Jetichew – Jo Jo the Dog-faced Boy
He was born with hypertrichosis, as was his father. This caused long hair to grow all over his body. They toured together until his father died and then Fedor hooked up with Barnum, as with most of his oddities, concocted a back-story. Crowds were told Jo Jo was found by a hunter living in a cave. As part of his “act” he would growl and bark.
- Isaac Sprague – The Living Skeleton
Human skeletons were popular back then. Sprague was probably the most famous. At age 12, his weight rapidly went down and he ended up weighing 43 pounds.
- Anna Swain – The Giantess of Nova Scotia
Anna was over 6 feet tall at age 10. She reached 7’5 by age 17.
- Zalumma Agra – The Circasian Beauty
There was legend that women from the Caucusus were the most beautiful women in the world. They were sought out as concubines and for harems. Agra was one of several who toured with circuses. She dressed in Oriental clothing and recited poetry. Later, she added sword-swallowing to her act.
- Chang Yu Sing – The Chinese Giant
Chang was already famous in China and Europe when he went to work for Barnum. He was almost 8’ tall. He was paid $600 per week!
- Hannah Perkins – The Fat Lady
She weighed over 700 pounds and was over 6 feet tall. Naturally, she was married to a skeleton man named John Battersby.
- Rudolph Lucas and His Albino Family
The group of albinos were advertised as “white Africans born to black parents”.
- Prince Randian – The Human Torso
Of course he was not royalty. He was born with tetra-amelia syndrome which means no arms and no legs. His parents made the best of the situation and put him in the circus. He entertained for the next 45 years. In his act, he would roll and light a cigarette with his lips. He also painted and wrote with his mouth. He ended up marrying and had four children.
- Myrtle Corbin – The Four-Legged Woman
She was born with dipygus, which resulted in her being born with two pelvises. This meant she had four legs – two small ones in the middle. She joined the circus at age 13 and at the peak of her career was making $450 per week.
- Stephan Bibrowski – Lionel the Lion-faced Boy
He took Jo Jo’s place when he retired. He suffered from the same condition. Barnum told crowds that Lionel’s mother had witnessed her husband being killed by a lion when she was pregnant and this caused the child to be born with hair all over his head. He would growl and snarl at the audience.
- William Henry Johnson – Zip the Pinhead
He was born to poor former slaves. Early in life, his head stopped growing. His parents saw an opportunity and “sold” him to the circus for a cut of his earnings. He was billed as a “missing link” found in the Amazon. He supposedly ate only raw meat and nuts. He worked for the circus for 67 years.
- Nora Hidebrandt – The Tattooed Lady
Her father had a tattoo parlor in New York City and practiced on her. She ended up with 370 tattoos. Barnum claimed she had been captured by Indians, tied to a tree, and tattooed.
- Madame Clofullia – The Bearded Lady of Geneva
She had a beard by age 8. Her family sent her to boarding school, but when she graduated she accepted her destiny and began to tour Europe with her father. She trimmed her beard to look like Napoleon III. She eventually got married and had a son who was hairy.
https://allthatsinteresting.com/p-t-barnum-oddities#12
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