Anonymous,
This may be a real stretch considering there were 300 year old elephants back around then, but I wonder how many babys "born" were actually "captured" and "Mama Betty and Baby Bop" was a fairly successful marketing tool? I think "maybe" is a pretty safe place to be on a lot of "old" history.
Wade Burck
Posts
Why the placement in a system box car? Perhaps they feared the regular bull car was too confining or unsafe for the baby? Where did the birth actually take place? Maybe this was the "birthing chamber," too?
I can't make out the inscription, something about California.
To me this would indicate "Baby Hutch" the first of four calves from "Alice" and "Snyder" born 5/25/12 at Salinas.
This does look like a system box car which seems logical under the circumstances. Unfortunately the calf only lived 42 days since the mother would have nothing to do with it.
"Hutch" died 6/6/12 at Pendleton, Oregon.
Maybe?:
BABY ELEPHANT
BORN IN MONTEREY
CAL OF SELLS-FLOTO
SHOW 9/20 HOURS OLD
Maybe!