Photographs of the Cole Bros. Circus filling Covington's streets and Ringling Bros. setting up near Dayton, Kentucky, are preserved in the Kenton County Public Library's digital archive. Starting Thursday, July 30, residents can see the era's hand-painted banners up close at a new exhibit across the river, then hear a local disability studies scholar explain the complicated human stories behind them.
The American Sign Museum in Cincinnati opens "Freaks & Sideshows: American Circus Banners 1920–1970" on Thursday, July 30, with the exhibit running through Sunday, October 4. The show features original circus signage and advertising art from the decades when traveling circuses drew massive crowds to small towns, the library said in a blog post published Friday, July 25.
The opening celebration runs from 5 to 8 p.m. on July 30. Admission is free for museum members and $20 for non-members. The museum, at 1330 Monmouth Ave. in Cincinnati, is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Local ties run deep
KCPL's Faces & Places digital archive holds more than 144,000 images, including rare photographs that show how deeply the circus shaped life in Kenton County. One image captures crowds surrounding the Cole Bros. Circus in Covington, with horse-drawn wagons, performers and spectators filling the streets. Another shows the Ringling Bros. circus setting up near Dayton, Kentucky, with a baseball game underway a short distance away.
The archive also preserves a postcard of Sid and Marty Krofft's Circus '70 attraction at Cincinnati's Coney Island, a live black-light puppet show that ran daily from 1969 through 1971. The Faces & Places collection began in 2006 and grew significantly in 2008 when the Kentucky Post donated its photo archive to the library.
Free discussion on disability and the circus
Jason Harris, founder of Jason's Connection and Director of Strategic Operations at Living Arrangements for the Developmentally Disabled (LADD) in Cincinnati, contributed research to the exhibit. Harris, who holds a master's degree in Disability Studies from Syracuse University, will lead a free community discussion hosted by Kenton County Public Library on Thursday, August 27, from 7 to 8 p.m. The library has not yet announced which branch will host the event.
The talk, titled "Beyond the Banners: How the Circus Impacted the Disability Community," will explore how the circus both exploited disabled people and created spaces for community, according to the library. Harris is an Autistic adult whose online platform, Jason's Connection, connects more than 300,000 people of diverse abilities to resources and services.
Upcoming events
- Thursday, July 30: "Freaks & Sideshows" opening celebration, American Sign Museum, 5–8 p.m. Free for members, $20 non-members.
- July 30–October 4: Exhibit on view, American Sign Museum, 1330 Monmouth Ave., Cincinnati. Wednesday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
- Thursday, August 27: "Beyond the Banners: How the Circus Impacted the Disability Community," free discussion led by Jason Harris, hosted by Kenton County Public Library, 7–8 p.m. Branch location to be announced.
