Friday, May 09, 2008

Dragon Float (From Buckles)


SAVE0242, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.

This is the same vehicle as seen in picture #7.
Written on the back is: "Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth 1909.
One of the old Howes parade chariots- 1872."

This being the case they got at least 60 years service out of it.

Posted by Buckles at 5/09/2008 05:59:00 AM

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

The Dragon float actually dates back one more year to 1871 and was on the show until 1937, not making the transition into the Johnny North era. However, I believe one of the dragon wings is at the Ringling Museum. This is an interesting photo of the float giving a greater sense of height to the wagon and, at first, I thought it might have been a different dragon float (other shows such as Forepaugh also had dragon floats). The side shown also illustrates a different form (straight) to the right wing tip beneath the boy’s resting right arm than in the oft-seen left side with bent wing tip. Also barely evident is the neck for the third dragon head on the other side of the driver’s seat. Note also the wheels and platform that match an 1888 view of the wagon but are quite different from the straight sided platform and wheels with webs shown in the 1931 Rockford photo.

The Dragon float began on the Howes Great London which was owned by Seth B. Howes and others but managed by his nephew Egbert, son of Nathan Howes. The show was framed in and toured England for 1870, then came to the US in 1871. If Barnum had not debuted his circus that year, this would have been the big show of 1871 with its truly spectacular parade wagons and strong show including five performing elephants and trained tigers along with the Jee family of English riders. When this show hit problems due to the financial Panic of 1873, it was acquired by others who also had difficulties and finally ended up in the hands of the printer who had supplied all the show’s posters. He, in turn, disposed of it to Cooper & Bailey who had just returned from an Australian and South American coastal tour with a much-dilapidated show. The rest is history, as they say, with one of the Howes’ elephants giving birth and supposedly being the reason for the merger of Barnum & Bailey. This is an English-built wagon separate from the later Barnum & London pony floats created in the mid-1880s by Fielding of New York (the three survivors are at Baraboo).

Dick Flint
Baltimore

09 May, 2008 11:09

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