Freakshows

[Gail]

Was listening to a How Stuff Works podcast about PT Barnum and the sideshow attractions he used to put on. They talked about the freakshows of the age and a couple of the stars made famous by Barnum.

What passed for entertainment in those days would be considered shocking today. For example, the little Burmese girl who was covered in hair. She was billed as the Missing Link, if you can imagine.

Chang and Eng Bunker- the Siamese twins. These guys had an awesome life, except that one of them had a drinking problem later on. Between them they owned a plantation, had 33 slaves and fathered 19 children. They did quite well financially when they toured, putting themselves on display.

[Kevin H]

Barnum was quite a man, I've enjoyed reading about him and programs about him. It was pointed out that he was also a strong Christian. One Sunday he was in church and the pastor was preaching against the circus, now Barnum had been conserned about the church's crticizism about the circus and was keeping those objections out of his show, but as he heard this preacher preach against the circus Barnum stood up and said something like "Jesus died for us circus people just as much as he died for you, and we need Jesus just as much as you."

Now I came across an interesting document in the White Estate vault. I have not found anything to conferm this so I either don't mention it or if I do say that I only saw it on the one document, but it gave an over view of Mrs. White's life and has a section where P. T. Barnum had sponcered her to go on a series of meetings to spread the health message. Now trying to check this out a friend pointed out a passage where when Barnum's show came to town that she did put up a tent near by to teach those who went to attend his show to come in and learn about health. But this one form said that he actually sponcered her to give a series of meetings.

Oh, another story I found is that Mrs. White did give a warning against the circus, which was at the time other pastors were warning and which Barnum was reforming. After Mrs. White died, Willie White believed that the work that Barnum and others had done changed the circus enough that his mother's warning no longer applied and planned to take his children to the circus. However a lot of church members said "How can you take Mrs. White's children to the circus when Mrs. White warned against the circus" and they decided not to cause controversy and that they did not go.