Today in History

July 05, 1810
P.T. Barnum Born
Phineas Taylor Barnum is born in Bethel, Connecticut. He gets his start in show business in 1835, when he opens a traveling show with a woman who claimed to be 161 years old and the former nurse of George Washington. Barnum's promotion brings Tom Thumb, Jenny Lind and Jumbo the elephant to American audiences. In his 60s he starts the circus he calls "The Greatest Show on Earth." He dies in 1891 at age 80.



Today's Feature History Article

Facing a Bumpy History

The much-maligned theory of phrenology gets a tip of the hat from modern neuroscience




 



Advertisement