Finding Aid
Circuses and Wild West Shows
Circuses and Wild West Shows collection. – 1902-1957. – 41 posters. – Posters have been numbered by the archivist. First and second accruals.
First accrual
CIR1 “Clyde Beatty and Cole Bros. World’s Largest Circus”. Red lettering on a white background. Illustrated with three clowns, with one riding a pig. Information on the show in New Bedford, June 30 is on a pasted-on strip. [1952].
CIR2 “Col. Tim McCoy’s Real Wild West And Rough Riders of The World. The Winning of the West”. Red and black lettering on a blue background. Illustrated with cowboys on a stage coach fighting Indians on horses. Information on the show in Wilmington, May 7 is on a pasted-on strip. [1938]
CIR3 “Cole Bros. Circus Presents the Great Florenzo”. Red, black and blue lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with a race car driving down a slide, flipping and landing. [1940?]
CIR4 “Cole Bros. Circus. Clyde Beatty: Greatest Wild Animal Trainer of All Time – In a Single-Handed Combat With 40 Man-Eating Lions And Royal Bengal Tigers”. Red and black lettering on yellow background. Illustrated with Clyde Beatty holding a chair surrounded by lions and tigers in the circus ring. Information on the show and street parade in Guelph, June 27 is on a pasted-on strip. [1935]
CIR5 “Cole Bros. Circus. America’s Favorite Show”. Yellow lettering on a blue background. Illustrated with a clown standing over circus tents. [1946]
CIR6 Cole Bros. Circus Presents Quarter-Million Pound Act of Performing Elephants / The Most Colossal Trained Animals Display Ever Presented”. Red and yellow lettering on yellow and black background. Illustrated with many elephants performing circus tricks. Erie Litho & Ptg Co., Erie, PA. No. 12561. [1949]
CIR7 Cole Bros Circus. Betty Lou Former Star of Tarzan Pictures Now With Cole Bros. Circus”. Red lettering on a yellow background. Ilustrated with a large gorilla. No. 41-10184-5. [1941]
CIR8 “Cole Bros. Circus. Harietta: Europe’s Favorite Equestrienne, First Time In America”. Red and yellow lettering. Illustrated with Harietta standing on a horse facing a clown under the big top. [1935]
CIR9 “Cole Bros. Circus. Miss Ruth Nelson: America’s Most Fearless And Daring Horsewoman”. Red lettering across the top, yellow lettering on a black background on bottom. Illustrated with Nelson doing various tricks on horses. [1948]
CIR10 “Cole Bros Circus. Only African Elephant Exhibited With Any American Circus: Jumbo the 2nd with Clyde Beatty”. Red lettering on a yellow background, and yellow lettering on a blue background. Illustrated with Jumbo in chains. Information on the show in Guelph is on pasted-on strip. [1935]
CIR11 “Cole Bros. Circus. Big Free Street Parade: Is The Most Magnificent, Largest, Greatest Processional Spectacle Ever Seen. Given Absolutely Free at 11 O’clock A.M. Preceding The Initial Exhibition Of The World’s Greatest Show with Clyde Beatty”. Illustrated with a circus parade, featuring elephant sand horses. Information on the show playing in Guelph is on a pasted-on strip. [1935]
CIR12 “Cristiani Bros. 3 Ring-Wild Animals Circus”. White lettering on a red background. Illustrated with a large lion roaring. Information on the show playing in Tarboro on Tue. Oct. 8 is on pasted-on strip. [1957]
CIR13 “Forepaugh & Sells Brothers. Enormous Shows United. Spotted and Saddle Back Tapirs: Most Perfect Specimens in Captivity”. White and black lettering. Illustrated with two tapirs grazing in the wild. Copyright, 1902 by the Strobridge Lith Co. Cin’ti & New York. 1902
CIR14 “Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus. First Time In America Blacaman Hindu Animal Hypnotist”. Red, black and blue lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with a man hypnotizing ravenous lions. Erie Litho & Ptg Co., Erie, PA. [1938]
CIR14a [Jones Bros.]. “Buffalo Ranch Real Wild West. Illustrated by cowboys and Indians – “The Red Indian War Dance”, “Equestrian Football”, “A Lesson in the History of Pioneer Days”, “Games of the Real Red Men, Camel Races”. Milwaukee, Riverside Print Co., Chicago 33/9. [ca. 1910]
CIR15 “King Bros. and Christiani Combined Circus. World’s Largest Circus Parade. Gorgeous Free Street Parade 11am”. Red lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated a large parade of elephants, camels, horses and performers. [1953]
CIR16 “King Bros. Circus. An All New All Different Show”. White and yellow lettering on a blue background. Illustrataed with a clown over the big top. Information on the street parade and show in Guelph is on a pasted-on strip. [1955]
CIR17 “King Bros. & Christiani Combined Circus”. Red lettering on a white background. Illustrated with three clowns, one of which is riding a pig. Information on the show in Bradford, July 30 is on a pasted-on strip. [1952]
CIR18 “Master Beery Exhibitions. Prof. Jesse Berry. Fairgrounds August 12-16 1913. Illustrated with Prof. Berry, contests and cowboy. Contests include saddle horse and cowboy events; also wild African zebras
CIR19 “Ken Maynard’s Wild West, North Platte, Friday July 26. Pasted-on strip for a poster not extant in this collection.
CIR20 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey. Tribe of Genuine Ubangi Savages: With Mouths And Lips As Large As Those Of Full-Grown Crocodiles”. Red, white and brown lettering on yellow, green and black backgrounds. Illustrated with Africans with extended lips and traditional African headdress and accessories. Illinois Litho Co., Chicago, U.S.A. [1932]
CIR21 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. Durbar of Delhi”. Red lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with a large group of elephants in traditional Indian decoration with Indian man. [1933]
CIR22 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey. The Greatest Show on Earth.” Yellow letters on a blue background. Illustrated by Bill Bailey with a large elephant carrying a clown on its trunk. Chicago Show Printing Co. 1945
CIR23 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Gargantua The Great”. Purple lettering on a yellow background and white lettering on a red background. Illustrated with two large gorillas. [1942]
CIR24 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. Presenting a Stupendous New Congress Of Amazing World-Wide Features Including Giraffe-Neck Women From Burma. The Greatest Educational Attraction The World Has Ever Known”. Red, black and yellow lettering and a yellow background. Illustrated with Burmese men and women with decorated necks. Central Ptg and Illinois Litho Co., Chicago, U.S.A. [1933]
CIR25 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Shows. Red letters on a white background. Illustrated with a pouncing tiger. Illinois Litho Co. Chicago[1933]
CIR26 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. The Biggest and Most Magnificent Dressage Display Ever Presented, Including 85 Pure Bred American Horses Schooled in The European Manner of The World-Famed Imperial Spanish Riding Academy in Vienna”. Red lettering on a beige background. Illustrated with horses performing dressage in three rings. Information on the show playing in Dayton, June 15 is on a pasted-on strip. [1938]
CIR27 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. 100 Double Length Steel Railroad Cars Crammed and Jammed With Wonders From All Corners Of The Earth”. Yellow lettering on a blue background. Illustrated with numerous railcars unloading the many animal attractions. Includes information on the show in Abilene September 4. [1938]
CIR28 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. The World-Famous Magyars Europe’s Greatest Acrobatic Troupe Presented for The First Time In America”. Red lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with a group of acrobats posing in traditional Magyar dress. Information on the show in Syracuse, July 2 is on a pasted on strip. [1937]
CIR29 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. Presenting The Colossal New Spectacle India, Most Sublime Pageant In History”. Red and blue lettering on a light blue background. Illustrated with three British soldiers leading a procession of elephants on horses. Information on the show in Syracuse, July 2 is on a pasted-on strip. [1937]
CIR30 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. The Largest Gorilla Ever Exhibited – Gargantua The Great: The World’s Most Terrifying Living Creature”. Red and blue lettering on a white and yellow background. Illustrted with a large, angry gorilla grasping an African in traditional dress. Information on the show in Concordia, September 3 is on a pasted-on strip. [1938]
CIR31 “Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus. The Royal Bokara Troupe in Great New International Congress Of Acrobatic Marvels From Every Land”. Red and blue lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with acrobats performing on carts drawn by camels in a Middle Eastern setting. Information on the show in Trenton, June 3 with pasted-on strip. [1936]
CIR32 “Russell Bros. Circus. 3 Ring Circus”. Red lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with acrobats, elephants, horses, clowns, etc. Information on the show in Coatsville, July 31 is on a pasted on strip. [1939]
CIR33 “Walter L. Main 3 Ring Trained Wild Animal Shows. National Show Co. Inc., Operators”. Red lettering on a yellow background. Illustrated with a leopard, polar bear and lion on a see-saw. Riverside Print Co., Milwaukee, Chicago. [1937]
CIR34 Unknown. Illustration of a clown giving a thumbs up. Writteon on the verso is “Gelbert [?] Circus 1943 with Tenell [?] Jack. [1943]
CIR35 Unknown. Illustration of three clowns playing with a fire cracker. Extreme oversize.
Second accrual
CIR36 "Cole Bros. Circus. Blood Sweating Hippopotaumus from the River Nile. World's Largest Travelling Zoo." Illustrated with a hippopotanus in a circus wagon. [1948]
CIR37 "Conklin Shows World's Finest. Red Chevron club Bazaar-Carnival, May 6 to 11, Guelph". Illustrated with a female circus performer and a view of the midway. Enterprise Show Print, Rouleau, Sask.[1940]
CIR38 "Al G. Kelly and Miller Br". The remainder of the heading which is pasted on top of the poster has been torn off. The poster depicts the head of a lion. Milwaukee, Riverside Print Co., Chicago 2763.
CIR39 "Garden Bros. Circus". Illustrated with a clown and female acrobats. King Show print, Estevan, Sask.
CIR40 "Circus Aramant". Text of the poster is in German, red lettering on beige background. Illustrated with a lion, elephant, and a clown.
