Barnum's American Museum

For other articles with similar names, see Barnum Museum (disambiguation).
Barnum's American Museum in 1858

Barnum's American Museum was located at the corner of Broadway and Ann Street in New York City from 1841 to 1865. The museum was owned by famous showman P.T. Barnum and his partner and original owner, John Scudder. Prior to their partnership, the museum was known as Scudder's American Museum. The museum offered both strange, and educational attractions. The museum is also referenced in the broadway musical Barnum. The museum was relaunched on the internet in July 2000.

Contents

History

Barnum opened his museum on January 1, 1842 to create a place where families could go for wholesome, affordable entertainment but his success drew from the fact that he knew how to entice an audience.1 Its attractions made it a combination zoo, museum, lecture hall, wax museum, theater and freak show, that was, at the same time, a central site in the development of American popular culture. At its peak, the museum was open fifteen hours a day and had as much as 15,000 visitors a day.2

On July 13th, 1865,3 the American Museum burned to the ground in one of the most spectacular fires New York has ever seen. Animals at the museum were seen jumping from the burning building, only to be shot by police officers. Barnum tried to open another museum soon after that, but that also burned down in a mysterious fire in 1868.4 It was after this time that Barnum moved onto politics and the circus industry.5 Barnum's American Museum was one of the most popular attractions of its time.6

In July 2000 the museum opened again on the internet due to the support of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The CUNY Graduate Center rebuilt the five-story museum on a Web site with the aim to provide students and history buffs with a full archive of information about the museum and relevant 19th-century subjects. 2

Attractions

The museum's collection included items collected throughout the world over a period of 25 years.7 The museum offered many attractions which grew to great fame. One of the most famous was General Tom Thumb a 25-inch tall dwarf. Thumb wasn't the only physical oddity there, there was also the Fiji Mermaid and Josephine Boisdechene, who had a large beard, which had grown to the length of two inches when she was only eight years old. As if to supplement Tom Thumb, another famous attraction of the museum was William Henry Johnson, who was one of Barnum's longest running attractions. Another one of the famous attractions at the museum were Chang and Eng, Siamese twins that were extremely argumentative, both with each other and Barnum himself. At one point, Barnum noticed that people were lingering too long at his exhibits. He posted signs indicating "This Way to the Egress". Not knowing that "Egress" was another word for "Exit", people followed the signs to what they assumed was a fascinating exhibit...and ended up outside. 8

The five story building also served great educational value. Aside from the different attractions, the Museum also promoted educational ends, including natural history in its menageries, aquarium (which featured a large white whale), and taxidermy exhibits; history in its paintings, wax figures (including one of Jesus Christ), and memorabilia; and temperance reform and Shakespearean dramas in its "Lecture Room" or theater.3

References

  1. ^ Darice Bailer (2001-01-21). "The View From/Bridgeport; Museum Invites Visitors to Step Right Up". The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  2. ^ a b Tina Kelley (2000-07-01). "A Museum to Visit from an Armchair". The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  3. ^ a b "Disastrous Fire". The New York Times (1865-07-14). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  4. ^ "CIty and Suburban News". The New York Times (1885-10-26). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  5. ^ Michael Frank (2002-06-21). "Will Wonders Never Cease?". The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  6. ^ "The Barnum's American Museum Illustrated". Barnum's American Museum Illustrated Magazine (1850). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  7. ^ Brainerd Dyer (1958-07-13). "Today in History". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  8. ^ O'Neill, Laurie (1981-12-27). "Almanac Is Itself a Rare Occurrence", New York Times. 

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  • This page was last modified on 26 November 2008, at 20:21.

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