Old Bet (died July 24, 1816) was the first circus elephant and the second elephant brought to the United States. There are reports of an elephant brought to the United States in 1796, but it is not known for certain that this was the elephant that was later named Old Bet.

Biography

The first elephant brought to the United States was in 1796, aboard the ''

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

'' which set sail from

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

for New York on December 3, 1795. However, it is not certain that this was Old Bet. The first references to Old Bet start in 1804 in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

as part of a

menagerie A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern Zoo, zoological garden. The term was first used in 17th-century France, in reference to ...

. In 1808, while residing in

Somers, New York Somers is a town located in northern Westchester County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 20,434. The nearby Metro-North Commuter Railroad provides service to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan with a ...

Hachaliah Bailey Hachaliah Lyman Bailey (pronounced ''heck-a-LIE-uh''; July 31, 1775 – September 2, 1845) was the founder of one of America's earliest circuses. In 1808, he purchased an Indian elephant which he named "Old Bet" and which was one of the first suc ...

purchased the menagerie elephant for $1,000 and named it "Old Bet".. On July 24, 1816, Old Bet was killed while on tour near

Alfred, Maine Alfred is a town in York County, Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 3,073. Alfred is the seat of York County and home to part of the Massabesic Experimental Forest. National Register of Historic Places has two l ...

by local farmer Daniel Davis who shot her, and was later convicted of the crime. While many people believe that the farmer thought it was sinful for people to pay to see an animal, another suspected reason is jealousy.

Legacy

In 1821, the

Scudder's American Museum Scudder's American Museum was a museum located in New York City from 1810 to 1841, when it was purchased by P.T. Barnum and transformed into the very successful Barnum's American Museum. Before Scudder The roots of the museum date back to 1791, ...

in New York announced that they had bought the hide and bones of Old Bet and would mount the remains at the museum. The elephant was memorialized in 1825 with a statue and the Elephant Hotel in Somers, New York. In 1922 the elephant

John L. Sullivan John Lawrence Sullivan (October 15, 1858 – February 2, 1918), known simply as John L. among his admirers, and dubbed the "Boston Strong Boy" by the press, was an American boxer recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing ...

walked 53 miles to lay a wreath for the memory of Old Bet at her memorial statue.

References

External links

"First Circus Elephant" (video)
— Old Bet, featured on a segment of ''

Monumental Mysteries ''Mysteries at the Monument'' (formerly ''Monumental Mysteries'') is an American reality television series currently airing on the Travel Channel and is hosted by Don Wildman. The show uncovers stories of history and unsolved mysteries behind Ame ...

'', (originally aired: 25 July 2013 on

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) 1816 animal deaths Individual elephants Year of birth missing Place of birth missing Circus animals

Biography

Legacy

See also

References

Further reading

External links