What Happened to Mile-Long Circus Trains?

Comments · 449

• IT

  @ITSHISTORY · 1 year ago · pinned

  Use my code SOCASH or click the link in the description for 20% off DeleteMe. Go to &nbsp;<a href="http://joindeleteme.com/SOCASH">http://joindeleteme.com/SOCASH</a>, activate your plan, and reclaim your privacy. Don&apos;t wait until someone else misuses your data—protect yourself now.

  16

• N0

  @n0isyturtle · 1 year ago

  This first time I ever got drunk was when I ran away from home at 16 and came across a B&amp;B circus train. They caught me stealing drinks from their cooler outside and wound up inviting me in to drink more and play poker. And nothing that interesting ever happened to me since.

  376

• CL

  @Clownboy15 · 1 year ago

  Former Ringling guy here. I worked on the red unit for the 127th edition in 1997. I literally ran away with the circus. I tried for years to get into Clown College and always made it to the final cut when I’d get cut. A friend of mine came into work one day saying he met some circus people the night before at a bar and told them about me and they said they were hiring. My boss looked at me and asked what I was still doing here. I clocked out, hauled tail to the Hampton Coliseum, talked to some folks and BAM! Next thing I know I’m on the train heading for New Jersey! One of my most fond memories of traveling on the train was waking up in the middle of the night heading to Albuquerque. I was laying in my bunk and had a window right by my head. I could look up into the sky and saw more stars than I had ever seen in my life! A drawback to train life were those long jumps. The jump to Albuquerque for example, was three days. By the time we got there it was after nine at night, everything was closed but I didn’t care. I HAD to get off that train! 😂

  165

• DE

  @derrickross2761 · 1 year ago

  My mom worked on Ringling back in the &apos;70s as an aerialist. She said one of the best parts was riding the train

  51

• DA

  @daniellarue4895 · 1 year ago

  I worked for Ringling Brothers Circus through out the 90’s and lived on both the Red Units and the Blue Units. &nbsp;It was the Best experience I ever had next to my children, we were Family and they will always be family to me

  66

• FR

  @Friskee62 · 1 year ago

  I worked for Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus when I was younger. I am 77 now...I was part of the crew that set up the Calliope, then sold food during the circus. Slept in a trailer that accommodated &nbsp;6 of us at the head of the trailer and with 3 elephants in the rear, that was fun.

  99

• GA

  @gailbrum · 1 year ago

  In the early 50&apos;s the B&amp;B would pass right behind our fence. My mother knew the conductor. As a special treat, he would make sure the calliope was playing just for us. &nbsp;Now that was awesome.

  59

• LA

  @lazzyfare4721 · 1 year ago

  As a railroad conductor in the mid 1980&apos;s I worked with the Blue train twice when it came to Hershey, PA. We used to set the animal cars off in the small rail yard off Derry Rd. where the cars to shift the Hershey chocolate plant &nbsp;were kept. Then we took the performers and the equipment cars to the old Reading railyard at Rutherford Heights about six miles west of Hershey. Very memorable times, lol.

  108

• BR

  @brucewilson1958 · 1 year ago (edited)

  I&apos;m a 71 year old American Man, a Native of Iowa. I graduated from High School in 1972. That Summer I got a Weekend job selling concessions at the R &amp; B Circus. On Sunday my Buddy and I were hired on as Porters on their Train. We Traveled the SW for 6 weeks.😢

  18

• TR

  @trevorthesorcerer · 1 year ago

  Thank you for celebrating circus history.

  16

• SP

  @Splintermagnet · 1 year ago

  I have worked for the railroad for a long time, we used to run these trains from Chicago to our town and then put the train away in our yard tracks. In the beginning people would drive by and look at the train, towards the end though, nobody would come by to see it. It was an interesting piece of history but a real pain for the train crews.

  39

• 23

  @23431 · 1 year ago

  I miss the circus train it was so cool to see traveling through my town

  43