Poster: P. T. Barnum's "Scenes from a Long and Busy Life"

Full-color poster titled "Scenes from a Long and Busy Life” featuring a portrait of P. T. Barnum in the center, surrounded by vignettes illustrating highlights of his life and career. The subtitle of the poster describes Barnum as, “The Sun of the Amusement World from which all Lesser Luminaries Borrow Light." The poster is dated to about 1881, since in that year Barnum gave a fountain to his hometown of Bethel, Connecticut, which is a scene shown in the top right corner. In April of 1882, Barnum brought Jumbo the elephant to America, an event that is absent from the vignettes and surely would have been included had the poster been produced after that time. Below Barnum's portrait is a brief description of his life and career. The vignettes on the left side of the poster include scenes of the American Museum; an elephant plowing a field; Barnum's first grand mansion in Bridgeport, Iranistan; Barnum lecturing in England; a view of Barnum's adopted city of Bridgeport, which he was instrumental in developing; Barnum as Mayor of Bridgeport; and Barnum meeting President Garfield and Secretary Blaine. The vignettes on the right side include scenes of Barnum and young Charles S. Stratton ("General Tom Thumb") meeting crowned heads of Europe; a bronze fountain Barnum gave to his native town; Barnum giving a speech before the Connecticut State Legislature; Jenny Lind's arrival in America; a dinner given in Barnum's honor; Barnum riding through the New York Hippodrome with King Kalakaua of Hawaii; and a view of the circus Winter Quarters in Bridgeport. The lower righthand corner reads "with compliments, P.T. Barnum.” The purpose of this poster is unknown. It is not an advertisement for the circus, though clearly it promotes the image of P. T. Barnum, and illuminates many of his lesser known achievements, such as speaking before the General Assembly in favor of ratifying the Thirteenth Amendment. The poster was produced by the Strobridge Lithographing Company of Cincinnati, Ohio. Strobridge was known for producing the magnificently colored posters that advertised P. T. Barnum’s circuses, and the later Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth. Strobridge produced color print material for other circuses as well. Color lithography came into its own in the latter half of the 1800s and changed the face of advertising, employing artists produce complex and beautifully detailed color images. Barnum is best known for his involvement with the circus that bore his name, but his circus ventures came about in the early 1870s when he was in his 60s. The first show was called "P. T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus." Railroads propelled the circus to success, making it easier to reach a number of locations and far more people, and the intake was significant. Barnum then opened the New York Hippodrome with similar acts. In the 1880s, he encountered competition from other circuses. A merger between Barnum’s show the Great London Show of Cooper, Bailey, and Hutchinson formed the Barnum and London Circus. Negotiations in 1887 formed the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth. After Barnum's death in 1891, Bailey contineud to operate the circus. After his death in 1906, Ringling Brothers bought the business and operated it separately from their own for over ten years. The name remained until 1919 when the two circuses were combined to become Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey. It came to an end in May 2017 when the circus ceased performances after 146 years.