ANCIENT& not so ancient WISDOM
offering a weekly positive perspective

August 25, 2005

"How were the receipts today at Madison Square Garden?"

- final words of P.T. Barnum (1810 - 1891)

Phineas Taylor Barnum was born on July 5, 1810 in Bethel, Connecticut. Barnum's first job was clerking in his father's country store. In 1820s, he worked as a clerk in Brooklyn, ran a fruit and confectionary store, was a lottery agent in Pennsylvania. In 1829, he married Charity Haslett and raised a family of four children.

Between 1831, Barnum started his own newspaper in Danbury, Connecticut the Herald of Freedom to combat what he perceived to be sectarian attempts to bring about a union of church and state. He was charged with libel for statements he made about opponents three times. He was convicted once and sentenced to  60 days in jail. 'I had my room papered and carpeted previously to taking possession,' he wrote to make his stay more comfortable. During his 60 days, he had a constant stream of visitors including a pastoral visit from a local minister. His release was a major news event of the time.

In 1835 Barnum, moved to New York City to run a grocery store and a boarding house, where he met Joice Heth, who claimed to be the 161-year-old nurse to George Washington. His first entry into show business was an exhibit featuring Ms. Heth. In 1836, he took a small circus on a tour throughout the South, and in 1842  he opened the American Museum in New York City, which brought him his first fortune. Its exhibits, lecture hall, and 3,000-seat theater, provided entertainment and learning to over 37 million people.

In 1850 Barnum brought the "Swedish Nightingale," Jenny Lind, to America. Under his management, she gave over 90 concerts. Four years later, he published the first edition of his popular autobiography, The Life of P. T. Barnum, Written by Himself. In 1855, some of his investments failed, and he was forced to sell the American Museum to pay off his debts. In 1860, he brought it back. The museum burned down in 1865, and he had it rebuilt on a nearby site.

By 1870, Barnum built his traveling show that featured a menagerie of characters, a caravan, hippodrome, and circus. The first performance was in Brooklyn before 10,000 people. This evolved into his first two-ring circus, the "Great Traveling World's Fair." Within ten years, this developed into the Barnum and Bailey Circus, "The Greatest Show on Earth," with its star, Jumbo the elephant. P.T. Barnum died in 1891 still running "The Greatest Show on Earth".

He considered himself a public benefactor. He thought most Americans 'worked too much and as a consequence did not know how to spend their leisure time'. He offered his customers good value, which is why he believed they returned again and again to his various productions. He proudly stated that "my prime object has been to put money in my purse," and he also proudly asserted that "No one . . . can say that he ever paid for admission to one of my exhibitions more than his admission was worth to him."

Wishing you a great and exciting journey of creating happiness and profits.

Sincerely,