Endnotes: I chose to write a newspaper article about Joice Heth because she was Barnum’s first human curiosity and how he started his business. Joice Heth was also one of Barnum’s greatest hoax’s. I chose to format this as a newspaper article because I thought it would bring to peoples attention what was going on in town in this time period.
I chose to make an obituary for Joice Heth because she was Barnum’s first curiosity and his biggest hoax. He told the world that she was 161-years-old and when she dies Barnum had an autopsy done and allowed people to pay to watch. During this they discovered she couldn’t be over 80-years-old so Barnum tried to tell the people she was still alive and that he had given the doctor a fake body, Barnum told the people that Joice would be returning to the circus some day. I believe this is important because it really shows the way Barnum treated these freaks and how to him they were only money, he would tell the spectators anything they wanted to hear about these freaks just for the extra money. I decided to put the obituary inside a newspaper article talking about the hoax in the eyes of the community, mostly because you usually see obituaries in the newspaper but also because the hoax was important. Information - (“The Joice Heth ExhibitThe Lost Museum Archive.”)
I chose to make an obituary for Joice Heth because she was Barnum’s first curiosity and his biggest hoax. He told the world that she was 161-years-old and when she dies Barnum had an autopsy done and allowed people to pay to watch. During this they discovered she couldn’t be over 80-years-old so Barnum tried to tell the people she was still alive and that he had given the doctor a fake body, Barnum told the people that Joice would be returning to the circus some day. I believe this is important because it really shows the way Barnum treated these freaks and how to him they were only money, he would tell the spectators anything they wanted to hear about these freaks just for the extra money. I decided to put the obituary inside a newspaper article talking about the hoax in the eyes of the community, mostly because you usually see obituaries in the newspaper but also because the hoax was important. Information - (“The Joice Heth ExhibitThe Lost Museum Archive.”)
Anonymous story written for the newspaper -
I’m a young woman from the U.S., the year is 2016 and I wanted to share my story of what I have learned from my research over the years.
I’ve seen a lot of things in my time but I’ve never seen anything like this. When I was younger I read a book called Human Oddities by Noria Jablonski and it really opened my eyes. I have always looked at these so called ‘freaks’ as monsters because they don’t usually look like the rest of us, they are unusual. But then I realized, they aren’t monsters, they are just as human as any of us. The real monsters are the ringmasters who exploit these innocent people to the public. I have always been very interested in these creatures but the sight of them always made me a little nervous, however, after reading Jablonski‘s book, I really learned a lesson.
The biggest name in this circus freak industry seemed to be P.T. Barnum. gathered people like, Anna Haining Swan Bates who stood more than 7ft tall, Tom Thumb who stood almost 3ft tall, the bearded lady, and many many more. Barnum pulled off many huge hoax’s in his time just to reign in the extra cash. One of his biggest and most famous hoax’s was Joice Heth. She was a slave he had bought and advertised as a 161-years-old nursemaid for Gen. George Washington. Heth was old, but not that old, she was blind and slowing dying each day as Barnum took her on tour and exploited her to the public. When she dies Barnum continued to use her for money. He sold 1,500 tickets for a public autopsy on Heth in New York performed by Dr. David Rogers. Another famous one was William Henry Johnson who Barnum called Zip the Pinhead. Johnson was a dwarf with a unusual disease called microcephaly. Microcephaly caused his head to taper at the top, looking like a pin. Barnum dressed Johnson in a furry suit and showed him to the public in a small cage with monkeys, he told Johnson to screech and rattle the bars. Barnum would tell the public that he was some cross between a man and an ape.
Not only was he a horrendous person to his freaks, he also didn’t have much respect for the animals in his circus. Barnum believed that elephants could not feel pain because of their thick skin. Once Barnum imported nine elephants from Sri Lanka in a small and cramped shipping container where they were kept for four months. Inside the elephants had no fresh air and not even enough space it take a single step. By the time the container arrived to America one elephant had already passed away. The ones that did survive survived received extensive amounts of torture in their time. Barnum used a burning method to train them. This burning method was to stick a hot poker up their trunks. The elephants would also cry in pain when they were hit with sharp bull-hooks. Barnum’s most famous elephant, Jumbo, was known for drinking a whole keg of beer in a single act. (“Hulton Archive.”)
Knowing the way Barnum treated his freaks and his animals answered my lifelong question of who the real monster was. Reading all the information I wished that people back then understood what was going on behind the scenes and tried to do something to stop him. I feel that when Barnum started, he started innocently but when he saw the money coming in he found the money more important then treating these humans and animals with respect. People see these freaks as monsters because of their differences from us, but just remember that deep down, Barnum and other ringmasters like him are the real monsters in life.
I’m a young woman from the U.S., the year is 2016 and I wanted to share my story of what I have learned from my research over the years.
I’ve seen a lot of things in my time but I’ve never seen anything like this. When I was younger I read a book called Human Oddities by Noria Jablonski and it really opened my eyes. I have always looked at these so called ‘freaks’ as monsters because they don’t usually look like the rest of us, they are unusual. But then I realized, they aren’t monsters, they are just as human as any of us. The real monsters are the ringmasters who exploit these innocent people to the public. I have always been very interested in these creatures but the sight of them always made me a little nervous, however, after reading Jablonski‘s book, I really learned a lesson.
The biggest name in this circus freak industry seemed to be P.T. Barnum. gathered people like, Anna Haining Swan Bates who stood more than 7ft tall, Tom Thumb who stood almost 3ft tall, the bearded lady, and many many more. Barnum pulled off many huge hoax’s in his time just to reign in the extra cash. One of his biggest and most famous hoax’s was Joice Heth. She was a slave he had bought and advertised as a 161-years-old nursemaid for Gen. George Washington. Heth was old, but not that old, she was blind and slowing dying each day as Barnum took her on tour and exploited her to the public. When she dies Barnum continued to use her for money. He sold 1,500 tickets for a public autopsy on Heth in New York performed by Dr. David Rogers. Another famous one was William Henry Johnson who Barnum called Zip the Pinhead. Johnson was a dwarf with a unusual disease called microcephaly. Microcephaly caused his head to taper at the top, looking like a pin. Barnum dressed Johnson in a furry suit and showed him to the public in a small cage with monkeys, he told Johnson to screech and rattle the bars. Barnum would tell the public that he was some cross between a man and an ape.
Not only was he a horrendous person to his freaks, he also didn’t have much respect for the animals in his circus. Barnum believed that elephants could not feel pain because of their thick skin. Once Barnum imported nine elephants from Sri Lanka in a small and cramped shipping container where they were kept for four months. Inside the elephants had no fresh air and not even enough space it take a single step. By the time the container arrived to America one elephant had already passed away. The ones that did survive survived received extensive amounts of torture in their time. Barnum used a burning method to train them. This burning method was to stick a hot poker up their trunks. The elephants would also cry in pain when they were hit with sharp bull-hooks. Barnum’s most famous elephant, Jumbo, was known for drinking a whole keg of beer in a single act. (“Hulton Archive.”)
Knowing the way Barnum treated his freaks and his animals answered my lifelong question of who the real monster was. Reading all the information I wished that people back then understood what was going on behind the scenes and tried to do something to stop him. I feel that when Barnum started, he started innocently but when he saw the money coming in he found the money more important then treating these humans and animals with respect. People see these freaks as monsters because of their differences from us, but just remember that deep down, Barnum and other ringmasters like him are the real monsters in life.
Endnotes: I chose to write an anonymous short story about how Barnum treated his freaks and circus animals because I think it’s very important to realize that these freaks have never done anything wrong. So many people are afraid of these people just because of their looks but they are just as human as any of us, the real monster is P.T. Barnum because of the way he treated them.