#1 Martin Couney Saved Over 7,000 Premature Babies By Exhibiting Them In Incubators In His Coney Island Sideshow. By 1943, Nearly Ever Hospital In America Had One Of His Incubators - And He Wasnt Even A Doctor!
When people hear the word circus, they think of a spectacle filled with gravity-defying stunts, animals performing tricks, and colorful clowns. Back in the day, there was another act that was prominently part of these marquees.
Many traveling circuses in the 1800s and 1900s featured sideshows or freak shows. People with biological rarities were showcased in such events. Referred to as "freaks of nature" in popular culture, they had physical deformities such as excessive hair growth, additional limbs, unique tattoos, and missing body parts.
#2 Maud Wagner The First Professional Female Tattoo Artist, In 1904. (She Also Worked As A Tattooed Lady For The Circus)
#3 In The 1910s, There Was An Austrian-American Circus Act Featuring Katie Sandwina, A Remarkable Strongwoman. One Of Her Notable Feats Was Lifting Her Husband Overhead
People saw these oddities as a way to make a quick buck as spectators would flock to see these humans with mutations. Sadly, they were treated as objects of interest and entertainment, shifting the stigmas held by people into curiosity. These carnival sideshows required a separate entry fee from the main circus.
In 1881, P.T. Barnum, known for his promotion of sensational attractions and hoaxes, joined hands with James Bailey to create the Barnum & Bailey Circus, often dubbed "The Greatest Show on Earth". The biggest sideshow was part of their circus as one of the chief attractions.
#4 After The Death Of Her Husband, Mary Ann Bevan Decided To Enter A Contest And Won "Ugliest Woman In The World" & Was Hired By A Circus. She Endured The Ridicule Of Others To Give Her Kids A Better Life
#5 Ella Harper Was Born With A Rare Condition That Caused Her Knees To Bend Backward. She Had To Walk On All Fours, Earning Her The Nickname “Camel Girl.” She Made A Fortune With A Weekly Wage Of $200 In 1886
#6 A Circus Strongwomen Balances A Piano And A Pianist On Her Chest, 1920s
The Barnum and Bailey performers appeared in the center of a large tent, while a ‘lecturer’ walked around describing the unique characteristics of each person. As bizarre as this sounds, their popular entertainers included ‘Jo-Jo the Human Sky Terrier, whose long hair made him look like a dog’, Annie Jones, the Bearded Lady, among many others.
In the late 1800s, while touring in London, a group of 40 or so of these performers rightfully staged a labor strike. They demanded that the management of the Barnum and Bailey circus shouldn’t use the term freak for their show’s promotional items.
#8 Prince Randian, Also Known As The Living Torso, Was A Performer In American Sideshows In The 1930s. Born In British Guyana In 1871, Randian Was Known As The "Human Caterpillar" For His Ability To Crawl On His Belly
#10 1899, Two African-American Brothers With Albinism Were Forcibly Exploited As Performers In A Circus. In 1927 They Returned To Roanoke And George Recognized Their Mother, And Screamed, "Willie, She Is Not Dead"!
#12 George Moore (The Living Skeleton) vs. Fred Howe (The Fat Man), Two Circus Performers, 1897
They held meetings to decide on a new name and even shared a strongly worded resolution: “That we, a majority of the living human curiosities at the Barnum and Bailey Show, emphatically protest against the application of the word ‘freak’ to us, and severely condemn its general assignment to those who, for their benefit or otherwise, were created differently from the human family as the latter exist today, and that, in the opinion of many, some of us are really the development of a higher type and are superior persons, inasmuch some of us are gifted with extraordinary attributes not apparent in ordinary beings.”
#13 Lucia Zarate, The Shortest Woman In History, Died Of Hypothermia When Her Circus Train Became Stranded In Snow In The Sierra Nevada Mountains In 1890
#14 Krao Farini (1876 – 16 April 1926) Was An American Sideshow Performer, Who Was Born With Hypertrichosis And Took Part In 19th-Century Exhibition Tours In North America And Europe. (403x599)
#15 The Hilton Sisters: Violet (Left) & Daisy (Right). Conjoined Twins And Entertainers, Born In England During The Early 1900’s
The news of this revolt created a media frenzy across Britain. Articles were published on the ‘final awakening of personal pride in abnormal species of the human race’. A campaign was started to find a new name for them. Many suggestions like Anomalies, Peculiar People, Uniques or Unusuals were sent in from around the country.
#16 The Man With A Parasitic Twin Growing Out Of His Torso: The Life Of Circus Performer Jean Libbera
#17 "World’s Largest Woman And Smallest Man", July 1922. Nellie Blanche Lane, 642 Lbs., And Clarence Chesterfield Howerton, 2 Ft. 4 Inches Tall, One Of The Munchkins In 'Wizard Of Oz' (Who Was 9 Years Old)
#18 Francesco "Frank" Lentini (May 18, 1889 − September 21, 1966) Was A Sicilian-American Sideshow Performer. Born With A Parasitic Twin, Lentini Had Three Legs, Four Feet, And Two Sets Of Genitals
The word ‘Prodigies’, which was suggested by Canon Albert Wilberforce of Westminster Abbey, was accepted after receiving 21 votes. Eleven people voted for the name Human Marvels and there was one vote each for the other 10 names. The Prodigies were happy with the new name and life returned to normal.
#19 Former Circus Performer Jakob Nacken (7,3”) Was The Tallest German Soldier Of Wwll, Here He Is Chatting With British Corporal Bob Roberts (5,3”) After Surrendering To Him Near Calais, France In 1944
#20 Circus Freak Shows Used To Include Exotic Dancers
They'd backcomb their hair to look more "exotic" & give an elaborate backstory about how they're former dancing girls from the haram of a wealthy sultan. That way the show would be plausibility "educational" enough to get around legal loopholes regarding nudity.