Wednesday, July 22, 2020

FROM JERRY CASH


13 comments:

Chic Silber said...


Many thanks to Jerry

for sending this series

Perhaps he will provide

captions & notes

Andy Bakner said...

Great Photos !!! Thank you Jerry!

Jerry Cash said...

Recent comments on the blog about the effect of wind on tents and poles reminded me of some pictures I took of Beatty Cole in Philadelphia on Thursday, May 20, 1976. During set up the gusts of wind lifted the big top off the ground and moved the short quarter poles into an almost vertical position.

The sequence starts with the big top on the ground with everything calm and then moves into the heavy wind.

Roger Smith said...

I have to notice the American flag is missing from the King Pole.

Chic Silber said...


In those days of the "Leaf" built

160 foot round top with 3 middles

the "short" quarter poles were

know as outside quarter poles at

a length of 23 feet & the inside

quarter poles were 34 feet

I have Lief Osmundsen's drawings

of that top in my Sarasota office

Chic Silber said...


The bottoms of outside quarters

were painted red & the inside

quarters had blue bottoms

"King" pole is the European

term for center pole or truss

"We" call them center poles

Chic Silber said...


For many years the Philly date

was 2nd longest after Commack

In my early years they played

on Lighthouse Field with the

James Strates Carnival

Chic Silber said...


The next "lot" was at

Liberty Bell Racetrack

It was all downhill after

that with some gruesome

mudholes & dustbowls

Chic Silber said...


For many years the "Lulu"

Temple of the Shrine was

the sponser for Mondays

through Saturdays but not

for the Sunday shows

Roger Smith said...

The King Pole is the first pole raised. Doesn't anyone pay attention to Enoch Brafford?

Strates was out front of us in '64. I discovered the circus folk and the carnies didn't mix.

Chic Silber said...


Thanks Roger as I had

forgotten that use of

the term from early times

Wasn't the "Queen" pole

centered in the "Alley"

Although they retired

all of their coaches

Strates remains as the

only railroad show in

the US of A

Bob Swaney said...

DR Miller used to say that you go to a circus to be entertained and to a carnival to entertain yourself. Having had feet in both communities, I was surprised at the number of carnival folk who are circus fans.

Chic Silber said...


I also had a short term with Reithoffer

That's where I learned to drive a semi

& how to run & synch generators both of

which lessons have served me very well

For a number of years I also belonged

to the Gibsonton Showman's Club where

there were many cross polinated folks

that also belonged to our ShowFolks

Club in Sarasota