Jumbo the Circus Elephant

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Jumbo the Circus Elephant was an African elephant (his name means "Hello") captured by British explorers in 1864, and brought back to England's Royal Zoological Gardens at the age of four. He remained there as a popular attraction for 17 years. Jumbo was the largest animal ever held in captivity and the most loved. Children could ride on his back. In fact, when an agent of legendary showman, P.T. Barnum, managed to purchase Jumbo for $10,000, there was a public uproar in the newspapers and the courts. A hundred thousand school children wrote Queen Victoria, begging her not to let Jumbo go. The public raised five times Barnum's purchase amount as compensation but it was to no avail. On March 25th, 1882, Jumbo was boarded onto the Assyrian Monarch, which carried him across the Atlantic Ocean to New York City, where he became one of the most popular features of the Greatest Show on Earth.

[edit] Death of Jumbo the Circus Elephant

Jumbo the Elephant was killed by a freight train at 9:30 p.m., on September 15, 1885, in St. Thomas, Ontario. The Barnum and Bailey Circus was packing up to leave when Jumbo and a dwarf elephant were hit from behind. There are different versions of the events leading to Jumbo's death. Some say Jumbo ran onto the tracks to save Tom Thumb, a smaller circus performer who was also hit, but escaped with a broken leg. Another story recalls Jumbo charging the train aggressively, and then turning to run away at the last minute. There are also witness accounts of Jumbo's trainer, Scottie, frantically pulling Jumbo down the tracks after he was unable to push him into the ditch.

Engineer W. Burnip whistled and breaked, and threw Engine No. 88 into reverse, but the heavy downgrade only propelled them towards the fleeing elephant. Both Burnip and Engine Fireman John Forest escaped injury, but Jumbo's hide was ripped open the entire length of his back. He lay there, barely breathing, for three hours before he finally died.

(Information from St. Thomas and its Men of Affairs (1914). St. Thomas, Ontario: Journal Printing Company Limited.)