I don’t know what it is about retirement. Maybe my mind is not cluttered anymore with all the things I need to think about and retain now that I’m not committed to a paying job for most of my waking hours.
Or maybe it’s just that, like the old joke about how easily we get distracted by things as we age, I’m just fascinated by whatever catches my attention at any given moment. Couple that with my insatiable curiosity, and boy, I have a boatload of things even bigger than the stash of yarn that takes up a good chunk of my huge spare bedroom closet I want to learn more about.
This last week it was the circus that captured my attention when our friends from Washington State visited and we spent one morning at the Summer Circus Spectacular in Sarasota.
The story of our area of southwest Florida and the circus starts in 1927 when John Ringling moved the winter quarters of his Ringling Bros & Barnum & Bailey (RBBB) Circus from Bridgeport, CT to a 155-acre site on the east side of Sarasota. Ringling owned a lot of real estate in the Sarasota area. In the years leading up to the Great Depression, as his real estate holdings were financially threatened, he came up with the idea of revitalizing the economy of the area by moving the circus winter headquarters to the much warmer climate of Sarasota. It was certainly a win-win for Ringling and for Sarasota.
Winter quarters were like the spring training of the circus world. It was great to practice in warm weather. Veteran performers taught rookies the tips of the trade and the secrets of tapping into human emotion. Equipment was repaired or rebuilt, new costumes were designed, new routines were developed. Ringling laid out the grounds of the winter quarters like a zoo and animals from all over the world practiced new routines all winter. Those rehearsals were open to the public and became one of the top tourist attractions of the time.
The folks who made up the sideshows of the circus gravitated to a town called Gibsonton (nicknamed Gibtown), south of Tampa on the east side of Tampa Bay, but close enough to the Sarasota winter quarters for the performers to be close as needed. The appeal of Gibsonton to residents like Percilla the Monkey Girl, the Anatomical Wonder (a contortionist), Lobster Boy and Siamese twin sisters (who ran a fruit stand there) were many. At one time, Gibsonton had the only post office with a counter for dwarfs. More importantly though, Gibsonton had unique zoning laws that allowed residents to keep elephants and circus trailers on their front lawns. It is still home to the largest trade show in the carnival industry. It features a Showman’s Museum with exhibits mostly donated by practicing carnies. Gibsonton was the setting for a 1995 X-files episode and has been the inspiration for numerous books and movies. I first heard about Gibsonton in a Randy Wayne White novel last year.
In 1960, after a not so gentle “nudge” from local politicians who seemed to crave the green of development money, John Ringling moved the winter quarters south to Venice, Florida to about 15 acres near the airport. The circus still needed good access to the railroad to move people and equipment. It was the major attraction in Venice for 32 years. Then, in 1992, the Seminole Gulf Railroad announced it was abandoning 10 miles of track into Venice and the circus closed its winter quarters there. The fairgrounds in Tampa became the new winter quarters of the circus. Sadly, in 2017, under pressure from animal rights groups and shifts in audience tastes, the Ringling closed completely. Recently, they announced they were being “reborn” in 2024, without animals. There is a scheduled show in Tampa, FL in early January 2024. According to advance publicity, the new circus will feature more death-defying, awe-inspiring human feats. I can’t wait to go to the circus in 2024. Anyone want to come with us?
John Ringling sold the Ringling Bros & Barnum and Bailey circus in 1967 for $8 million. The following year, the new owners, realizing the age of all their clowns was more than 50 years old, established a Clown College in Venice. Tuition was free, but students had to pay for their own room and board. The college was one long audition and if a job in the circus was offered, students were obligated to commit to one year performing in the circus. Clown College closed in 1997.
Today, circus memorabilia and the Ringling name and legacy are still an enormous part of the Sarasota experience. The Circus Arts Conservatory was incorporated in 1997 as the National Circus School of Performing Arts. As a result of growth and mission enhancement, it was renamed and now provides year-round outreach programs in the community. It serves children through the Education Program, the elderly and those in care facilities through the Humor Therapy Program and includes the Sailor Circus Academy. The 66-acre estate of John and Mable Ringling (bequeathed to the state of Florida in 1936 and now under the governance of Florida State University) includes the Circus Museum, Ca’ d’Zan (the 36,000 square foot home of the Ringlings, built in the roaring 1920s and now housing the Ringling Museum of Art) , The Historic Asolo Theater, and Bayfront Gardens. It’s still a vibrant and interesting community attraction.
John Ringling developed Lido Key, a barrier island off the coast of mainland Sarasota into an upscale shopping and entertainment mecca known today as St Armand’s Circle. To facilitate island development, he connected the island to the mainland by building a causeway in 1926. Despite efforts to change it’s name, it’s still known as the John Ringling Causeway. Fun fact…elephants were used to haul timbers used to construct the causeway and bridge.
There’s so much more to say about Sarasota, the Ringling family, and the circus, but I’ve used up my 5-minute reading allotment today. If you’re planning to visit Grathen’s Last Resort, be sure to let us know if you want to include a day trip to all things circus history.
P.S. One place former circus elephants can now live is at the 135-acre White Oak Conservation Center in Yulee, FL. The owners plan to expand to 2,500 acres with enough water holes, forests, and grassland to support an entire elephant herd. There are no plans to open the conservation center to the public, or to add lions or tigers or bears. The lions and tigers and bears (and primates and birds) are at Big Cat Habitat at Gulf Coast Sanctuary in eastern Sarasota County. They are open to the public.
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