Learn more about the Archives. Established in , the Ringling Museum of the American Circus was the first to document the rich history of this phenomenally popular entertainment. Today, the Circus Museum is home to the newly restored Wisconsin. There is also an incredible wealth of 19th and early 20th century posters and props used by famous performers as well as a large collection of circus history and literature that includes newspaper clippings dating as far back as In January of , the Circus Museum Tibbals Learning Center opened to house posters, special exhibitions and its centerpiece — the 3, square foot Howard Bros.
Circus Model, a 44,piece re-creation of the Ringling Bros. Donated by the Feld family and Feld Entertainment Inc. In , a west wing was added to the Tibbals Learning Center. Here, visitors to these interactive galleries can walk the wire, squeeze into a clown car and have their picture take with a faux tiger.
So much of this has been made possible by the generosity of Howard Tibbals and his wife Janice. Tibbals fell in love with the circus as a boy and devoted his life to creating the miniature circus and lending his family name to the Learning Center. Home CircusTalk. Circus News. News and Events North America. Read the Full Article at Pollstar. You are about to enter a members-only zone. The circus was made especially profitable after the brothers began using railroads to travel to both small towns and big cities by train.
According to Henry Ringling North's description, the small town housed both performers and animals during the winter months. Known as "Winter Quarters," the area included stables, bunks, and wagon and blacksmith shops.
According to the Ringling nephew's account, the usually-quiet Midwestern city was home to up to fifty elephants and other wild animals during its coldest season. Along with the buildings for their circus crew, the brothers also owned a hotel and other properties. As a result of these historic buildings, along with several of the family's original houses, Baraboo is one of the locations most associated with the seven Ringling brothers.
While the brothers always returned home for holidays and other family business, Albert Ringling otherwise known as "Al" or "Uncle Al" was especially fond of Baraboo and made it his permanent home. After Al Ringling died in , his sister and his nephews moved into his mansion.
One of his nephews, Henry Ringling North, describes living in his uncle's "great, turreted, Renaissance-style mansion, half castle and half chateau, built of Lake Superior sandstone.
According to Ringling North's memoir, his "Uncle Al" served as equestrian director of Ringling show and was known by his nickname to the public as well as his family. In addition to his role as an equestrian director, he was also skilled at tightrope walking and always practiced "juggling and aerobatics. The Al Ringling Theatre still stands today and is marked as a historical spot.
According to his nephew's memoir, the building — recently restored in — was built as "an almost perfect copy" of Marie Antoinette's theater at Versailles. According to "Circus Kings," the Ringling brothers made Augustus "Gus" Ringling the advertising manager of the circus in One of the last to join the family business, Gus previously worked as a carriage trimmer.
Gus died in and by this time "the others were living in considerable splendor, each according to his taste," according to Henry Ringling North's memoir. The second-eldest Ringling brother had three daughters: Mattie, Lorene, and Alice. Meanwhile the second-youngest sibling, Henry Ringling, originally began helping his brothers by working the door at the circus shows.
His nephew Henry Ringling North wrote, "Until , Ringling Brothers was not a corporation, but a simple partnership.
As one by one the partner-brothers died, the survivors made a settlement with heirs and carried on. According to his nephew's memoir, Otto Ringling became known as "The King" for his power with financial matters.
While he was alive, Otto used his fortune to build a library of "fine books. In his New York Times obituary , his brothers additionally labeled "The King" as both "the financier of the family" as well "the Lieutenant General. John later took over much of Otto's financial duties, while his brothers maintained their separate responsibilities. Like their father before them, Alfred and his brother Charles worked in the harness making industry before the circus became a national success.
While his brother Al invested in the brothers' hometown of Baraboo, Alf T. Two massive dams were erected to change Petersburg Pond into what is now Lake Swannanoa. The room home was completed in and now sits on just 4. The property was also briefly used as the winter quarters for his son Richard's circus, the R. Richards Circus. Richard ended his involvement with the circus after barely two years, and moved to Montana to work as a rancher.
According to historian Fred Dahlinger Jr. However, both Ringling men maintained connections with the family business while they were alive. Paul Ringling died in The land, purchased by John Ringling, is still known as Ringling, Montana, today. Known as "Mr. Charles," Charles Ringling commanded the circus train and took on duties similar to that of a general manager, keeping a "Book of Wonders" to record the circus going-ons during his time traveling the rails. In his memoir, Henry Ringling North wrote, "Uncle Charles had a splendid car called the Caledonia, furnished in magnificent red plus and gold, with real lace curtains.
In addition to his massive homes in Wisconsin and Florida, Charles purchased the Gillespie golf course and developed the business sector of Sarasota, along with constructing the Sarasota Terrace Hotel. Nearby, Ringling Boulevard is named after him, as well as other buildings.
After her husband's death, Edith and her children each received a third of Charles' shares. In , Edith used this majority to nominate her son to the role of president and director, which had been given by default to his cousin, John Ringling North II. They used this controlling power to nominate Robert Ringling as vice president of the circus.
Robert briefly served as president of the Ringling Bros. Circus from to , during which the Hartford Circus Fire tragedy occurred. Robert's brief internment caused a bit of family tension: The new president was advertised as the return of a Ringling heir, as Robert was the only one of the original founding brothers' sons to assume the role. Robert's sister Hester continued to live on the massive property her father built in Sarasota, Florida in one of the estate's houses with her husband and children.
The estate was, and still is, known for its pink marble and expansive rooms. A walkway now connects the main house to the additional homes, where Hester and her family lived until her death. Additional luxuries of Charles included a fleet of carriages, a yacht called Symphonia, and many acres of Florida property. Always wanting to leave his hometown of Baraboo, John first lived in a hotel in Chicago.
His nephew said, "The only one who did not live part of the time in Baraboo was Uncle John, who became the most famous of them all. At the time of its completion, the massive room Venetian style palazzo included many amenities described by Henry Ringling North: a barroom with glass panels from St.
Louis' famous Cicardi Winter Palace Restaurant, a master "ballroom-sized bedroom,"and a bathtub cut from Siena marble. In his memoir, Ringling North also noted that John Ringling was able to keep an impressive supply of expensive alcohol during the prohibition years. A New York Times feature by Geraldine Fabrikan described the extraordinary work that went into restoring the palace and the works of art during the early s, spearheaded by curator Ron McCarty.
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