Circus Building facts for kids
The Circus Building is a special exhibit at the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, Vermont. It's a fun place where you can see lots of cool circus items. Inside, you'll find a huge collection of old circus posters, beautiful carousel animals, and amazing miniature circuses. These tiny circuses were made by talented artists like Roy Arnold and Edgar Kirk.
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History of the Building
The idea for the Circus Building came about in the 1950s. It was finished in 1965. The building was specially designed to show off the incredibly long Roy Arnold miniature circus, which is over 500 feet long! Walking through the large, horseshoe-shaped building, made of spruce and cedar, feels like you're part of a grand circus parade. Outside, big rocks form the building's foundation. They also create a cool background for the Daylily Garden, which was planted in 2008.
Amazing Circus Collections
Carousel Animals
Carousels first started in Europe. But they became super popular in the United States between 1870 and 1930. During this time, fancy carousels became a main attraction in new city parks. People had more free time and money to spend. Many skilled woodcarvers and painters created these park carousels. Even more smaller, portable carousels were made for country fairs and carnivals.
The Shelburne Museum has both kinds of carousels. A small, portable carousel works outside the Circus Building. Inside, you can see animals, chariots, and painted panels from a large park carousel. This one was made by the Gustav Dentzel Company in Philadelphia. The museum also shows figures from other carousel makers, both from Europe and America.
Gustav Dentzel, who was from Germany, opened America's first carousel business in 1867. Dentzel's workshop made the most realistic and graceful carousel animals. His carvers paid close attention to how animals looked. His painters carefully colored every part. The Dentzel animals at Shelburne Museum are from a carousel finished around 1902. This carousel had 40 animals, including 29 horses and four chariots. It also had three giraffes, three goats, three deer, a lion, and a tiger. Daniel Muller, one of Dentzel's best artists, carved these figures. It's amazing that all the animals still have their original factory paint! This is very rare because carousels were usually repainted often. Some figures have been cleaned recently. Old, discolored layers were removed to show the bright, detailed paint underneath.
The small, portable carousel outside the Circus Building was made around 1920. It was built by the Allan Herschell Company in North Tonawanda, New York. Allan Herschell started making carousels in 1883. His carousels were built to last through lots of travel. The horses were smaller and more compact than those made for permanent parks. Their heads and legs were tucked close to their bodies to prevent breaking. These machines could also be easily taken apart, moved, and put back together.
Circus Posters
In the 1800s and early 1900s, the circus was an event everyone looked forward to! Weeks before the circus arrived, colorful posters would appear on barns and fences. They announced the dates and new performers. When the circus finally came to town, everyone got excited. Wagons, elephants, and clowns would parade through the streets.
The Shelburne Museum shows off these old traveling circuses with vintage advertising posters. They line the inside wall of the Circus Building. The museum has over 500 circus posters. It's one of the best and biggest collections in the country. It includes many very rare, early posters. You can also see examples from all the major circuses from the "Golden Age" of American traveling circuses (around 1870-1940). These include famous names like Barnum and Bailey, Ringling Brothers, Adam Forepaugh, and the Sells Brothers. The posters are usually brightly colored and grab your attention. Most show dramatic new acts or exotic animals. Many make wild (and sometimes not true!) claims. They might say "the largest," "the smallest," or "the one and only."
Circus Carvings
The museum has three amazing miniature circuses made from carvings. The Circus Parade is over 500 feet long and runs through the Circus Building. Roy Arnold (1892-1976) from Hardwick, Vermont, started it in 1925. It took him 30 years to finish! The parade is built on a scale of one inch to one foot. Four other skilled woodcarvers helped Arnold with the parade. It shows accurate copies of wagons used by circuses during their Golden Age. The tiny parade is shown with pony-sized wagons. There are also life-sized figures originally carved by Samuel Anderson Robb for Barnum and Bailey wagons in the 1890s.
The Kirk Bros. Miniature Circus is a complete three-ring folk art circus. Edgar Decker Kirk (1891-1956) from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, created it. He worked on it for 46 years! Kirk was a brakeman on the Pennsylvania Railroad. He started the circus in 1910 when his children were little. He kept working on it until 1956, long after they grew up. Kirk worked at night after his 12-hour days with the railroad. He cut the figures for his circus from scrap wood using a foot-powered jigsaw. He finished the carving with a regular penknife. Only the nails and paint were bought new. The Kirk circus is complete with animal acts, clowns, trapeze artists, bands, side shows, and bleachers full of spectators. It shows Kirk's creativity, cleverness, and his lifelong love for the circus.
The collection also includes small models of a canal boat circus. From 1882 to 1887, people living along the Erie and Oswego canals in central New York state saw Sig Sautelle's big shows every summer. This was one of the only circuses ever to travel by boat! Sautelle, whose real name was George Satterlee (1848–1928), was a colorful showman. He was one of the most successful promoters of his time. Milo Smith of Herkimer, New York, built the wooden models of Sautelle's two circus canal boats. They give a clear picture of this unique regional circus.
