Sideshow Collection (page 3)

Between Heats [The Course], January 1, 1799. January 1, 1799. Creator: Thomas Rowlandson
Between Heats [The Course], January 1, 1799

Between Heats [The Course], January 1, 1798. January 1, 1798. Creator: Thomas Rowlandson
Between Heats [The Course], January 1, 1798

Circus Sideshow (Parade de cirque), 1887-88. Creator: Georges-Pierre Seurat
Circus Sideshow (Parade de cirque), 1887-88

Three Sticks a Penny, 1872. Creator: Gustave Doré
Three Sticks a Penny, 1872. Throwing sticks at a sideshow on Derby Day. From, " LONDON. A Pilgrimage" by Gustave Dore and Blanchard Jerrold. [Grant and Co. 72-78, Turnmill Street, E.C. 1872]

Trial of Strength, 1872. Creator: Gustave Doré
Trial of Strength, 1872. A strongman demonstrates his strength at a fairground sideshow watched by a crowd. From, " LONDON. A Pilgrimage" by Gustave Dore and Blanchard Jerrold

Mr. Patterson and His Apparatus, 1900. Creator: Unknown
Mr. Patterson and His Apparatus, 1900. Mr George W Patterson of Chicago was the first person to put on displays of juggling with electrically lit clubs

Madame Teresia, the Corsican Fairy, 1822. Creator: Robert Cooper
Madame Maria Teresa, the Corsican Fairy, 1822. Portrait of Maria Maria Teresa (1743-1790), who billed herself as the Amazing Corsican Fairy

Wybrand Lolkes, The Dutch Dwarf, 1821. Creator: Robert Cooper
Wybrand Lolkes, The Dutch Dwarf, 1821. Portrait of Wybrand Lolkes (1733-1801) who visited Britain in 1790 and exhibited himelf at travelling fairs

A Fair at Tenby, Pembrokeshire, southwest Wales Date: 1903

The Syren Drawn from the Life, 1759? Creator: Benjamin Cole
The Syren Drawn from the Life, 1759? Engraving of a mermaid, claiming to have been drawn from the life. Fake mermaids were popular in the 18th century

Il Ballo dell Orso, 1815. Creator: Bartolomeo Pinelli
Il Ballo dell Orso, 1815. A bear, chained and muzzled, is forced to dance to earn coins for its master. Dogs in miniature outfits walk on their hind legs as the crowd looks on

Shooting gallery at the amusement park, Coney Island, New York, USA, early 1930s

The Side-Show. Artist: Daumier, Honore (1808-1879)
The Side-Show. Found in the collection of Szepmuveszeti Muzeum, Budapest

Manners and Customs of ye Englyshe in 1849: A View of Epsom Downe on ye Derbye Daye, 1849. Artist: Richard Doyle
Manners and Customs of ye Englyshe in 1849: A View of Epsom Downe on ye Derbye Daye, 1849

Illustration by Andre Helle from Fables de la Fountaine, 1922, (1929). Artist: Andre Helle
Illustration by Andre Helle from Fables de la Fountaine 1922. From The Studio Volume 98 [London Offices of the Studio, London, 1929.]

Dancing Bear, 1785. Artist: C Knight
Dancing Bear, 1785. Illustration from Social Caricature in the Eighteenth Century... With over two hundred illustrations by George Paston [pseudonym of Emily Morse Symonds], (London, 1905)

The Indian Juggler, 1818. Performing his astonishing feats of activity - a performer balancing a sword on his chin, or possibly swallowing it

Bear and Monkey, 13th century, (1833). Dancing bears and monkeys would peform in the public streets. Illustration after a book of prayers in the Harleian Collection of the British Library

A bear standing on his head, 14th century, (1833). An engraving from The Sports and Pastimes of the people of England, by Joseph Strutt, (London, 1833)

Tutored Bear, 14th century, (1833). The teaching of bears to imitate the actions of men. An engraving from The Sports and Pastimes of the people of England, by Joseph Strutt, (London, 1833)

Circus Sideshow, 1887-1888. Artist: Georges-Pierre Seurat
Circus Sideshow, 1887-1888. A parade, the free entertainment offered at the entrance of a traveling theatre, is intended to attract a crowd and encourage the sale of tickets

Harold Pyott - Tiny Tim the English Midget
Harold Pyott (1887-1937) - Tiny Tim the English Midget The Living Doll - aged 43 years old, height 23", weight 24lbs. Twelve inches smaller than the renowned Tom Thumb (Charles Stratton) of P

Young South African Boy suffering from Vitiligo
Young South African Boy from Pretoria suffering from Vitiligo - titled here at the Leopard Skin Kaffir Child - A Freak of Nature. Date: circa 1905

Lionel the Lion-faced Man
Stephan Bibrowski (18911932), better known as Lionel the Lion-faced Man, was a famous sideshow performer. His whole body was covered with long hair that gave him the appearance of a lion; this was

SIDESHOW: CAMEL GIRL, 1886. Sideshow pitch card featuring Ella Harper, the Camel Girl, 1886

Lionel, The Lion-faced Man - Very Hairy Man
Stephan Bibrowski (18911932), better known as Lionel the Lion-faced Man, was a famous sideshow performer. His whole body was covered with long hair that gave him the appearance of a lion; this was

Romanian Pleasure Wheel
Simple Romanian Pleasure Wheel at a country fair. The postcard caption translates as: Party in the Country. Not quite the London Eye... Date: circa 1900

TURTLE BOY, c1895. George Williams, born with misshapen limbs and standing 18 inches tall, toured with circuses as Turtle Boy. Photograph, c1895

QUAKER GIANTS, 1849. The Quaker giant and giantess, exhibited at P.T. Barnums American Museum in New York City, 1849

Ripleys Believe-it-or-not - Anato Hayes - Odditorium
Ripleys Believe-it-or-not - Human Automobile Tyre - Wilber H. Roden ( Edema ) is inflated with an ordinary air pump to three times his normal size! Odditorium at The New York Worlds Fair of 1940

Days that are gone - Appy Ampstead - people enjoying a bank holiday on Hampstead Heath, north London, as depicted by Webster Murray. 1925

Crown at Village Fair
A crowd at a village fair. Date: 19th Century

Jenners Amusement Park, Loup City, Nebraska, USA. The park was founded around 1900 by Henry and Robert Jenner from London, and remained open until 1942. Date: circa 1910

DAISY & VIOLET HILTON (1908-1969). American conjoined twins who toured with American sideshows and vaudeville shows. Photograph, 1925

CIRCUS POSTER, c1890. Sideshow performers dressed in Turkish, Japanese and Sudanese costumes. Lithograph, c1890

CONEY ISLAND: PERFORMERS. Three Hindu musicians perform at Luna Park amusement park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Photograph, early 20th century

SIDESHOW POSTER, 1941. Poster for Ruth the Acrobat in the sideshow at the Vermont State Fair in Rutland, Vermont. Photograph by Jack Delano, 1941

VERMONT: SIDESHOW, 1941. Banner advertising the main sideshow of Human Freaks at the Vermont State Fair in Rutland. Photograph by Jack Delano, September 1941

VERMONT: SIDESHOW, 1941. The Fattest Man sideshow at the Vermont State Fair in Rutland, Vermont. Photograph by Jack Delano, September 1941

LOUISIANA: SIDESHOW, 1938. Snake eater at a fair in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. Photograph by Russell Lee, November 1938

VERMONT STATE FAIR, 1941. Barker at a sideshow at the Vermont State Fair in Rutland, September 1941. Photographed by Jack Delano

Circus Sideshow (Parade de cirque), 1887-88 (oil on canvas)
XOS1127611 Circus Sideshow (Parade de cirque), 1887-88 (oil on canvas) by Seurat, Georges Pierre (1859-91); 99.7x149.9 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA; French, out of copyright

CONEY ISLAND: SIDESHOW. A Free Show at Dreamland amusement park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Photograph, c1910-1915

CONEY ISLAND: DRAND FAMILY. The Whole Drand Family. Sideshow performers at Luna Park amusement park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Photograph, c1910-1915

CIRCUS POSTER, c1898. The Adam Forepaugh and Sells Brothers, Americas Greatest Shows Consolidated - Madame Yucca, the Female Hercules, the Strongest Woman on Earth... Chromolithograph, c1898

WILD WEST SHOW, 1898. Buffalo Bill Codys Wild West Show at the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition in Omaha, Nebraska. Photograph by F. A. Rinehart, 1898

The Great Monohan - Record-breaking Roller Skater
G.S. Monohan ( The Great Monohan ) showing off his skills on his roller skates - here jumping cleanly over three chairs. Date: circa 1909

Palm reader Zingora lets a lady know her love is true
Palm reader Zingora lets a lady know that somebody loves her madly! Is it the gentleman who is next in line...?! Date: circa 1907

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Step right up and step into the world of sideshows, where the extraordinary meets the ordinary. From Saartje Baartman, famously known as The Hottentot Venus, to The Pain-Proof Man and Captain Ringman Jack of Ripley's fame, these spectacles captivated audiences with their unique talents and appearances. In this captivating photo from the early 1900s, we catch a glimpse of Wadbrook's Royal Electrograph Bioscope Show. A mesmerizing display that transported viewers to another realm through moving pictures. But it wasn't just films that drew crowds; fairgrounds were also home to thrilling games like Three Ball Charlie or testing one's lung capacity for only a penny. And if you were feeling brave enough, why not try your weight or test your strength? Fortune telling was also a popular attraction at local fetes, with crystal balls revealing secrets yet unknown. Meanwhile, Stephan Bibrowski, better known as Lionel the Lion-faced Man astounded onlookers with his unique appearance. As we delve into history's funfair side shows and marvel at Nora Hildebrandt in her striking black-and-white portrait from 1895, we are reminded that these displays were not merely curiosities but glimpses into humanity's fascination with what lies beyond our everyday lives. So come one, come all. Step inside this captivating world of sideshows where wonders await around every corner. Let yourself be transported back in time to an era when entertainment came alive under colorful tents and curious souls sought out extraordinary experiences.