Milner Library is proud to announce the publication of the P.T. Barnum Letters and Ephemera, a digital collection drawn from Special Collections’ world-class circus holdings. This assemblage of 136 documents relating to Barnum and his many business ventures was originally collected by Walter Scholl, a former balloon ascensionist, parachute jumper, and retired printer from Chicago, who amassed a stellar collection of over 22,000 circus books, pieces of ephemera, and other items from a wide variety of sources. Scholl donated the lot to Milner Library in 1963-64, forming the basis of today’s Circus and Allied Arts Collection.
These intriguing, mundane, and sometimes confounding documents flesh out the world and writings of legendary showman Phineas Taylor Barnum, the man who revolutionized entertainment in 19th-century America. From important personal and professional correspondence to curious souvenirs saved from the dustbin of history, the collection illuminates the origins of modern show business through the works of a visionary self-promoter who blurred the lines between reality, entertainment, and humbug.
Many of these seldom-seen documents deal with Barnum’s acquisition and later disposition of 760 acres of land in what is now metropolitan Denver, Colorado. On the advice of his daughter Helen and her husband Dr. William Buchtel, Barnum purchased the property for cheap during the bankruptcy of the Denver Villa Park Association in 1878, but his lofty goals for its development ran up against the relative undesirability of the land. Barnum ended up selling what he could, then transferring the remaining parcels to Helen for the price of one dollar. William became mayor of Villa Park, then renamed Barnum, upon its incorporation in 1887.
Other materials deal with the triumphant American debut of famed “Swedish Nightengale” Jenny Lind, which Barnum arranged and initially managed, as well as his eponymous dime museum in New York. The collection also sheds light on the Greatest Showman’s cozy relationship with the press and his embrace of the lecture circuit to generate additional revenue during the slow winter months.
The P.T. Barnum Letters and Ephemera are freely available online. Whether you’re a scholar researching American cultural history, a student exploring primary sources, or a circus enthusiast looking for a journey into the past, this collection promises to captivate and educate.
