Saturday, October 02, 2010

From Buckles #2


Scan13137, originally uploaded by bucklesw1.

From Don Koehl
Having followed zoo and circus elephants in Europe since I was young,
im very much impressed how you have managed in US to follow the
american circus elephants.
Partly because same name is used more often, but also the movements
throughout the years between different circuses, in amuch higher
degree than in Europe.

I hope yu can help me out with the Babe at Gentrys during 1922, who
obviously had a simlair trail for same years as Pinto and Queen. Pinto
and Queen was easier to follow, if I have supposed right, that the
queen that died on Downie 1938 was Gentry Queen?

But Babe I find it difficault, due to the different Babes on the
various locations. Gentry Babe ( I just made a comment at the pic
taken one year before she died) doesnt fit, since she only stayed on
Gentry 1920-1924, and was sold to Christy 1924?


From Buckles
Don, you are going down a dangerous road here.
Listing elephants can literally become a maddening hobby. Just
about the time you think you have it figured out some obscure
article disrupts everything. Ask Bob Cline.
For some time I was seriously unbalanced until the Blog came along and now I am OK.

GENTRY BABE
1900 Imported from Hagenbeck Zoo
1900-23 Gentry Bros. Circus
1924 Christy Bros. Circus
1925-27 Lee Bros. Circus (Christy's #2 unit)
1928-30 Christy Bros. Circus
1931-32 George Christy Independent Act
1933 Sam B. Dill Circus
1934 Sam B. Dill & Tom Mix Circus
1935-38 Tom Mix Circus
1939-41 Bud E. Anderson Circus
1942 Atterbury Bros. (Leased from Anderson)
1943-45 Arthur Bros. Circus
1946-49 Seal Bros. Circus (Anderson)
1950-53 Wallace & Clark Circus (Luke Anderson)
1954 Pan American Circus
1955-67 Gene Holter Animal Shows
(Put to sleep due to old age 5-18-67)

"Babe" during her final years with Holter.
Maybe one of you West Coast guys can identify the pretty
lady with Wally Ross.

1 comments:

Roger said...

Long ago, I saw one other photo of this woman, during our Compound era. It was in some of the pictures Robert "Doc" Hayden brought around at times from his collection, which lamentably I never did see. Doc was Jungleland's Foreman when I first arrived, and identified this woman as Wally's wife of years ago.

In 1968, we showed Watsonville, California, with a package of Compound acts for Miller-Johnson. I was Ringmaster and had the lions, Don McLennon worked his horses and dogs, and Wally presented seals and elephants. I struck paydirt there, getting a load of meat, ten bags of shavings, and a shady spot to park. I commented on how good Watsonville had been to me, but Wally shared with us that his memories of the town were tragic. He told us in his hard-drinking years, he was coming in drunk and wrecked the truck outside of Watsonville, killing his wife and an elephant. This is only the 2nd time I've seen this face, and if memory serves, this woman may have been the wife in Doc's picture. To Wally's everlasting credit, he sought help from AA, lived the rest of his life as a recovering alcoholic, and never took another drink.