The Elk River Alligator

[W. Gray]

Besides the Elk River "alligator problem," the river also had an "elephant problem."

In 1899, Ringling Brothers circus visited Howard with twenty-five elephants, one-thousand human performers, five hundred horses, and one hundred cages of wild animals.

One elephant thought it was being over worked and ran away from circus workers where it hid in brush along the river until found. (Elk County History book,  p. 21)

[Janet Harrington]

I wonder where all those people and animals stayed?  Was it at the fairgrounds? 

[W. Gray]

Sometime prior to November 1945, when my dad was in the service my mom took me to a circus. All I can remember is a snapshot memory of looking at something strange called an elephant inside a tent with only a rope separating them and us. This was not during a performance but was in an elephant shelter tent and we were very close to those huge things watching them munch hay. I was petrified and can still remember staying close to my mom's leg. A few years ago, I asked her where the circus was and she said the fairgrounds.

I have difficulty envisioning how such a large circus as the one in 1899 could fit on the fairgrounds, although that area may have been larger at one time or had a lot of available adjacent open space. Besides the big top tent, there would have to be tent shelters for the 25 elephants, 500 horses, etc., a cook tent, service tents, room for 100 mobile cages, sideshow tents, etc.

Another oddity is the history book says the circus parade came into town at the Elk River ford south of Howard. The only ford I know of would have been at the location of the low water bridge south of the cemetery that was washed out in 1975. It does not seem logical that a circus parade would come down that huge hill from out of nowhere. However, if one is at the top of that hill, goes further south to the next section road, and turns east, there used to be a long railroad siding there. The freight portion of the circus must have parked on that siding, unloaded from flatbeds, and headed their animal wagon parade for the fairgrounds. There was no K-99 at the time and there were probably no bridges other than railroad over the Elk. It was at that ford pushing wagons across the Elk that the elephant became "overworked" and ran away.

I would have to think, though, that the passenger train housing the workers probably broke up and parked on the sidings west of Howard so they would be near their work area.

I bet many area people were happy with contracts to supply food, feed, and services to all those people and animals.