Topsy (elephant)
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Topsy (born circa 1875, died January 4, 1903) was a member of a domesticated herd of elephants at Coney Island's Luna Park. She had been a part of the Forepaugh Circus. Topsy was deemed an ill-tempered and dangerous animal since she had killed three men in as many years, including an abusive trainer who tried to feed her a lit cigarette. She stood 10 feet tall and was 19 feet 11 inches long.[1]
Because Topsy was so violent, her owners decided to put her to death. A proposal of hanging was abandoned after the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals protested. Per the suggestion of Thomas Edison, she was to be electrocuted using 6,600 volts of alternating current electricity, which Edison, a backer of direct current, had argued was more dangerous than DC as part of his unsuccessful campaign to discredit AC. The ASPCA found this suggestion acceptable, viewing electrocution as a more humane form of killing.
An estimated 1,500 had people gathered to watch Topsy put to death at Luna Park. The elephant was given carrots poisoned with 460 grams of Potassium cyanide. Then the electric current was applied. Electrocution killed Topsy quickly.[1] Edison recorded the execution with a motion picture camera and the film was shown subsequently to audiences around the country.
Luna Park burned down in a spectacular fire in 1944.[2]
A memorial for Topsy was placed in the Coney Island Museum on July 20, 2003.
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[edit] Trivia
- Snippets from Edison's film were used by Nine Inch Nails in the music video part of the Closure VHS set.
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Bad elephant killed. Topsy meets quick and painless death at Coney Island," The Commercial Advertiser, New York, Jan. 5, 1903. retrieved Oct. 27, 2006
- ^ Ed Boland, jr., "FYI: An elephant's demise," New York Times, July 8, 2001, pg. CY2
[edit] See also
- List of historical elephants.
- Mighty Mary, hanged in Erwin, Tennessee, 1916.
- War of Currents.
- Thomas Edison
- Chunee, an elephant in the menagerie at Exeter Exchange, executed by soldiers from Somerset House in March 1826.
- Tyke, was a circus elephant who on August 20, 1994 in Honolulu, Hawaii, killed her trainer, Allen Campbell, and mauled her groom Dallas Beckwith causing severe injuries during a Circus International performance before hundreds of horrified spectators.
- Shooting an Elephant
[edit] External links
- Video: Electrocuting an Elephant shows the actual killing of Topsy (MPG format)
- Video: Electrocuting an Elephant Alternate link for video (streaming)
- Video: Electrocuting and Elephant Video presentation of above (streaming)
- Electrocuting an Elephant at the Internet Movie Database
- The Coney Island Museum, Brooklyn, NY
