Adam Forepaugh BOLIVAR and JOHN L SULLIVAN

Adam Forepaugh BOLIVAR and JOHN L SULLIVAN, originally uploaded by bucklesw1. From Chris Berry Well over 100 years after this trade card was produced, the skeleton of "Bolivar" resides in the basement storage area of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. In the early 1880s Adam Forepaugh billed Bolivar as the "Largest & Heaviest Elephant in the World." And he was -- until Jumbo arrived from the London Zoo in April 1882. On Christmas Day 1888 Forepaugh presented Bolivar to the Philadelphia Zoological Gardens. Unfortunately he was considered so dangerous that he spent the last 18 years of his life chained in his stall. Over the years, Bolivar's health declined and he developed severe rheumatism. The big elephant died July 31, 1908 and both his skeleton and mounted hide were on display for many years at the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences. Some time ago the remains were taken off of display but his skull and skeleton are still in the museum's storage area. As for "John L"...he was of course named after the boxer John L. Sullivan and the boxing act was a mainstay on the Forepaugh and later Forepaugh Sells shows. It was "Old John" who press agent Dexter Fellows took on a 53 mile trek from Manhattan to Somers New York during the Garden stand in April of 1922. After arriving at Somers "Old John" laid a wreath at the Elephant Hotel in memory of "Old Bet" the first elephant exhibited in the United States. Needless to say, that stunt was reported in hundreds of newspapers across the country. Old John died in Sarasota in 1932.