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One of the most modest little men that ever lived has been forced to the front by the death of P.T. Barnum. James
Anthony Bailey for ten years has been Mr. Barnum's partner. He can, without exaggeration, be called the creator of the modern circus. He has lifted the circus to a standard that renders
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Equestrienne Josie Demott
Robinson wrote in her autobiography that, “Mr. Barnum was the advertiser, who loved the limelight, who rode around in the ring, and announced who he was. But Mr. Bailey was the businessman, content to be invisible...and interested only in the success of the show.”
219:, and an advance man for John Robinson and Bill Lake's traveling circus. F.H. Bailey gave McGinnis a job as his assistant, and the two traveled together for many years. McGinnis eventually adopted F.H. Bailey's surname to become James A. Bailey.
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Taped beneath a photo of James Bailey in the scrapbook of employee
Harrison Gunning is a small scrap of paper that reads, “P.T. Barnum was the great showman, but Mr. Bailey was the supreme of all circus managers, past and present.”
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Life with
Catherine was difficult as she tended to be overbearing and harsh. Sometime between 1859 and 1860, James ran away from Catherine's home and found a job and a place to stay on a farm about 10 miles outside the city of
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He established “Orphan Day”, one day a year when orphans could attend the circus for free. He was often known to carry children who couldn't walk into the circus tent and find them a seat away from the crush of the crowd.
549:"James A. Bailey, King Of Circus Men, is Dead. News Kept From Performers Till The Show Was Over. Widow Gets Circus Stock. Showman Died Of Erysipelas At His Country Home Near Mount Vernon After A Week's Illness"
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Barnum was the face of the circus, but James Bailey was the hard worker who insisted on staying behind the scenes. Barnum once wrote to him that James managed the show “ten times better than I could.”
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In his book about the circus, Earl Chapin May wrote, “Probably...no circus owner and manager left more sincere mourners than the thin little magnate known to millions as James A. Bailey.”
475:"A Cesar Among Showmen. James A. Bailey, The Partner And Successor Of Barnum. He Is The Creator Of The Modern Circus. His Tremendous Energy And Working Ability. How He Became What He Is"
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Bailey was considered by many to be a genius at logistics. His organizational skills for transporting people, animals, and equipment was copied by the military of more than one country.
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In his diary, James' brother-in-law Joe McCaddon writes that Bailey recounted stories of how he left the circus world at age 16 and went to work as clerk to a
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Following Barnum's death in 1891, Bailey managed not only The Barnum and Bailey
Greatest Show on Earth, but in 1894, took on the management of
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While the band blared and the clowns made fun and the elephants walked around at the circus last night for the thousands in
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After working at the hotel for a time, he was discovered by
Colonel Frederic Harrison Bailey, a nephew of circus pioneer
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and in 1855, James was orphaned when his mother died. James then went to live with his older sister, Catherine Gordon.
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In 1866, with the war over, he went back to work for Bill Lake, who now owned his own circus with his wife
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the
Elephant) in 1880, with their combined show opening the following spring in Madison Square Garden.
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590:"Woodlawn Cemetery • Crematory • Conservancy | New York's World Class Cemetery Since 1863"
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Detectives to travel with the show and protect circusgoers from grifters and thieves.
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James
Anthony McGinnis was born July 4, 1847 to Edward and Hannora McGinnis in
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American
Experience: The Circus: The Life and Times of James Bailey, Part 3
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American
Experience: The Circus: The Life and Times of James Bailey, Part 2
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American Experience: The Circus: The Life and Times of James Bailey, Part 1
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almost ridiculous the laws that once were so necessary for its regulation.
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https://cowgirlmagazine.com/wild-women-of-the-west-agnes-lake-thatcher/
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James A. Bailey – The Genius Behind the Barnum & Bailey Circus
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19:For other people named James Bailey, see
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453:(1st ed.). Stow, OH: Slanted Ink.
173:(July 4, 1847 – April 11, 1906) (
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670:The Biographical Dictionary of America
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362:James A. Bailey was inducted into the
16:American circus proprietor (1847–1906)
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111:James A. Bailey (professional title)
390:Allen, Robert (December 29, 2017).
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673:. Vol. 1. 1906. p. 183.
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364:International Circus Hall of Fame
321:in 1906 at age 58 at his home in
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614:"The Circus: Transcript, Part 2"
512:"The Circus: Transcript, Part 1"
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687:The Affairs of James A. Bailey
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49:James Anthony McGinnis
665:Bailey, James Anthony
620:. PBS. 9 October 2018
571:Madison Square Garden
518:. PBS. 9 October 2018
366:in 1960 and into the
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137:Ruth Louisa McCaddon
689:by Richard E Conover
678:James Anthony Bailey
171:James Anthony Bailey
30:James Anthony Bailey
618:American Experience
516:American Experience
368:Circus Ring of Fame
240:Agnes Lake Thatcher
102:The Bronx, New York
397:Detroit Free Press
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325:. He is buried in
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164:James Bailey House
372:Sarasota, Florida
335:Ringling brothers
327:Woodlawn Cemetery
267:Cooper and Bailey
256:Buffalo Bill Cody
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198:Detroit, Michigan
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244:Zanesville, Ohio
217:Hachaliah Bailey
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708:1906 deaths
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624:16 November
522:16 November
271:P.T. Barnum
231:during the
223:Circus life
697:Categories
599:2022-01-17
564:2007-07-21
490:2007-07-21
378:References
319:erysipelas
192:Early life
55:1847-07-04
374:in 1990.
341:in 1919.
331:The Bronx
296:Pinkerton
294:He hired
233:Civil War
178:McGinnis)
124:Managing
182:circuses
67:Michigan
202:cholera
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63:Detroit
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229:sutler
132:Spouse
552:(PDF)
478:(PDF)
329:, in
279:Jumbo
146:(
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626:2018
524:2018
455:ISBN
405:2017
88:, US
75:Died
45:Born
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