Barnum's American MuseumBarnum's American Museum was a dime museum located at the corner of Broadway, Park Row, and Ann Street in what is now the Financial District of Manhattan, New York City, from 1841 to 1865. The museum was owned by famous showman P. T. Barnum, who purchased Scudder's American Museum in 1841. The museum offered both strange and educational attractions and performances.
General Tom ThumbCharles Sherwood Stratton (January 4, 1838 – July 15, 1883), better known by his stage name "General Tom Thumb", was an American dwarf who achieved great fame as a performer under circus pioneer P. T. Barnum. Childhood and early lifeStratton was born January 4, 1838, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of a carpenter named Sherwood Edward Stratton. Sherwood married his first cousin Cynthia Thompson, daughter of Joseph Thompson and Mary Ann Sharpe.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey CircusThe Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, or simply Ringling, is an American traveling circus company billed as The Greatest Show on Earth. It and its predecessors have run shows from 1871, with a hiatus from 2017 to 2023. The circus started in 1919 when the Barnum & Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth, a circus created by P. T. Barnum and James Anthony Bailey, was merged with the Ringling Bros. World's Greatest Shows.
Fiji mermaidThe Fiji mermaid (also Feejee mermaid) was an object composed of the torso and head of a juvenile monkey sewn to the back half of a fish. It was a common feature of sideshows where it was presented as the mummified body of a creature that was supposedly half mammal and half fish, a version of a mermaid. The original had fish scales with animal hair superimposed on its body and pendulous breasts on its chest. The mouth was wide open with its teeth bared.
There's a sucker born every minute"There's a sucker born every minute" is a quotation often associated with American showman P. T. Barnum (1810–1891), although there is no evidence that he actually said it. Early instances of its use are found among salesmen, gamblers and confidence tricksters. Attribution to BarnumBarnum's biographer Arthur H. Saxon tried to track down when Barnum had uttered this phrase but was unable to verify it.
Jenny Lind's tour of AmericaThe Swedish sopranoJenny Lind, often known as the "Swedish Nightingale", was one of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century. At the height of her fame, she was persuaded by the showman P. T. Barnum to undertake a long tour of the United States. The tour began in September 1850 and continued into May 1852.
HoaxA hoax (pl.: hoaxes) is a widely publicised falsehood created to deceive its audience with false and often astonishing information, with the either malicious or humorous intent of causing shock and interest in as many people as possible.
BusinesspersonA businessperson, also referred to as a businessman or businesswoman, is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) to generate cash flow, sales, and revenue by using a combination of human, financial, intellectual, and physical capital to fuel economic development and growth.
Weekly newspaperWeekly newspaper is a general-news or current affairs publication that is issued once or twice a week in a wide variety broadsheet, magazine, and digital formats. Similarly, a biweekly newspaper is published once every two weeks. Weekly newspapers tend to have smaller circulations than daily newspapers, and often cover smaller territories, such as one or more smaller towns, a rural county, or a few neighborhoods in a large city.
James Anthony BaileyJames Anthony Bailey (July 4, 1847 – April 11, 1906) (né McGinnis) was an American owner and manager of several 19th-century circuses, including the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (also billed as "The Greatest Show on Earth").
New York CityNew York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States. It is located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs—Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island—each being coextensive with its respective county.
PoliticianA politician is a person who participates in policy-making processes, usually holding a position in a political party or an elective position in government. Politicians make decisions and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles or duties that politicians perform vary depending on the level of government, whether local, state, or national.
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