Who's "Performing Polar Bears" wagon in the right?
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Vintage Ringling Bros. Unloading In Boston--Year Unknown
Posted by
Wade G. Burck
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A Blog designed for discussion of topics related to, but not limited to, Circus, Zoos, Animal Training, and Animal Welfare/Husbandry. Sometimes opening up the dialog is the best starting point of all. And if for nothing else when people who agree and don't agree, get together and start discussing it, it will open up a lot of peoples minds. Debate and discussion even amongst themselves opens a window where there wasn't one before.
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6 comments:
This is Sells-Floto in Boston in 1927. Note the two giraffe wagons. That is the only year giraffes were on S-F and both animals failed to live out the season. If you can get a S-F program for that year you can determine who presented polar bears.
Richard,
Wow, are you sharp. I didn't even note the giraffe wagons until you pointed them out. Thank you for the show correction. Once again, I am owned by RJR. :)
Wade
Wade,
While I don't have a 1927 Sells-Floto program, the 1929 that I do have offered these cage acts.
Display 1 - Jules Jacot with Polar bears, Grizzly Bears and Black bears.
Display 2 - Mabel Stark and her wrestling tiger
Display 4 - Jules Jacot and his lion act
Display 6 - Allen King and his tiger and horse act
Display 8 - Allen King and his 20 tiger act
Bob
Bobby,
Thank you. A lot of cage acts. Did they do them one at a time, or in 3 ring display's, which would have been over kill at it finest. I never could understand a 3 ring display of cage act's. Unlike horses or elephants, they are normally very different from each other. I know I couldn't watch three cage act's going on at once, but maybe the public could. I would love to see a picture of Jules Jacot's mixed bear act or the Allen King 20. I wonder why there were so many pictures taken of one thing and so few, or none of another?
Wade
The RBBB camel unloading photo was taken in Boston around 1935.
The camels are all coming out of their no. 26 car. Stretching off to the right are the ring stock cars. While it does not show too well here, the camel and elephant cars were about 10 inches taller than the ones for ring stock.
The 4 elephant cars , nos 27, 28, 29, and 30, are to the left (in this photo) of the camel car. When the hike to the Garden (or to a lot) began, the elephants led the way followed by the camels, zebras, and then the ring stock.
A couple of zebras usually rode with camels in no.26. They were the overflow from zebra car no. 33 which was in the 3rd section. Beginning in 1939 camel car no. 26 was modified. From then on it carried all the zebras (then down to about 9 or 10 from over 20 in the early 1930s) plus a llama or two and the midget donkeys. For that the car was double decked in one end and a ramp led from just inside the door up to the second level. To provide ventilation in the bottom part, a series of air intake slots were put into the side. The camels rode in the taller end while the smaller zebras et al. were in the double-decked part.
What we see here are the stock cars of the 4th section. When out on the road, the locomotive would be off to the right (in this photo) just ahead of the ring stock cars. They were followed by the camel car and then the four elephant cars. Behind them came the sleepers for the performers.
The valuable ring stock got the preferred smoother ride just behind the locomotive while the sleepers brought up the rear so as to be as far away as possible from the steam locomotive’s cinders.
RJR,
Once again thank you so much for the schooling. I had no idea they had a "double deck type of system" for hauling the animals. Very unsafe and dangerous in case of emergency, but I guess if you kept your fingers crossed......
Wade
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