Also see Hartford Circus Fire and Animal Rights page in Previous Topics guide.
Born July 5, 1810 Bethel, Connecticut, U.S.
Died April 7, 1891 (aged 80) Bridgeport, Connecticut, U.S.
Resting place Mountain Grove Cemetery, Bridgeport
Mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut 1875–1876
Member of the Connecticut House of Representatives from the Fairfield district 1866–1869
The Showman and the Slave
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LibGuide summary: "In this story about one of the 19th century's most famous Americans, Benjamin Reiss uses P.T. Barnum's Joice Heth hoax to examine the contours of race relations in the antebellum North. Barnum's first exhibit as a showman, Heth was an elderly enslaved woman who was said to be the 161-year-old former nurse of the infant George Washington. Seizing upon the novelty, the newly emerging commercial press turned her act - and especially her death - into one of the first media spectacles in American history."
P. T. Barnum
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LibGuides: "One of the earliest practitioners of "the show business, " P.T. Barnum built his reputation largely on the exoticism of others. A man of complex motives, Barnum possessed a unique genius and his influence on popular culture is evident to this day. Barnum will be a three-hour Discovery Channel special airing in October. Illustrations, 260 in color."
Becoming Tom Thumb : Charles Stratton, P. T. Barnum, and the Dawn of American Celebrity
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"When P. T. Barnum met twenty-five-inch-tall Charles Stratton at a Bridgeport, Connecticut hotel in 1843, one of the most important partnerships in entertainment history was born. With Barnum's promotional skills and the miniature Stratton's comedic talents, they charmed a Who's Who of the 19th century, from Queen Victoria to Charles Dickens to Abraham Lincoln. Adored worldwide as "General Tom Thumb," Stratton played to sold-out shows for almost forty years. From his days as a precocious child star to his tragic early death, Becoming Tom Thumb tells the full story of this iconic figure for the first time. It details his triumphs on the New York stage, his epic celebrity wedding, and his around-the-world tour, drawing on newly available primary sources and interviews. From the mansions of Paris to the deserts of Australia, Stratton's unique brand of Yankee comedy not only earned him the accolades of millions of fans, it helped move little people out of the side show and into the lime light. -- Publisher description."
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