Sideshows
Posted By thecircusblog on July 14, 2012
My grandfather built a small side show on his circus. The Gorilla Girl was an illusion and was the main feature of the show. That all ended abruptly while traveling to their next town…A new teamster on the sideshow wagon and a rough trail, caused the large clear glass pane and the mirror used for the Gorilla illusion to break…..No more “Gorilla Girl” 1901…I just reminded myself of a question that was asked of me awhile ago. How many miles could a mud show travel in one day? It is a hard question to answer because there were very few paved roads from town to town in those days. Most roads then were a single dirt trail with wheel ruts. Circus wagons on a good day and trail could do about 15 to 20 miles in a full day. Automobiles in those times could do about 25 to 35 miles. What would slow up a mud show was the herding of hoof stock and larger animals. They would graze along the way and would cause the mileage to drop sharply. My father told me that often they would be a day or a day and a haft behind the wagons. It was absolutely important to make every jump as small as possible.
Hi James. Thank you for your comment.
About the author
thecircusblog
My name is Ivan M. Henry and I am the 4th generation of a circus/show business dynasty. I hope you enjoy the blog.Comments
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First, love the stuff you post here, one & all. And do you have anything about this Girl-to-Gorilla show of your grandfather’s and that 1901 date? That’s the only reference I’ve ever seen to that show before the mid-20th century, and I’d love to see some corroboration of an earlier date. Thanks.
HELLO I AM A FRENCH FUN FAIR AFICIONADA AND ESPECIALY I ADMIRE FREAKS AND LIVING MARVELS AND WONDERS LIKE MISS GORILLA OR Mr Hulk we had in the eightiesin the French funfairs i had so many frightening moments watching the transformation and after the performers took care of me because sometimes i went sick of fear ! the distortions of the faces and the bestiality in their eyes made my blood gone freezed of terror i would like to salute and say all my respect to ZAMORA YOUR WELL KNOWN GORILLA GIRL I SEN HER ALL MY FRIENDLY THOUGHTS BECAUSE I have a lot of real love for all the FREAKS!