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The Internet's most comprehensive list of sword swallowers past and present
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| NAME | PERIOD | LOCATION | BACKGROUND |
| Indian Fakirs | Circa 2000 BC | (India) | Sword swallowing originated about four thousand years ago in India by fakirs and shaman priests who first developed the art around 2000 BC, along with fire-eating, fire-walking on hot coals, laying on cactus or a bed of nails, snake handling, and other ascetic religious practices, as demonstration of their invulnerability, power, and connection with their gods. Sword swallowing is still performed in certain parts of India today. Sword swallowers in India are known by the term "golewala" (meaning "juggler" or "street performer") or "jagudar" (meaning "magician" or "miracle worker"), and there is said to be a tribe of sword swallowers in the state of Andhra Pradesh who pass on the art of sword swallowing from father to son. Seeking photos and more information. Indian Sword Swallowers Indian Sword Swallowers (1810 article) Indian Sword Swallowers (1822 illust) Indian Sword Swallower (1910 card) South Indian Sword Swallower (1940s?) Indian Sword Swallower (1950s?) Indian Sword Swallower (1980s) Indian Sword Swallower (1980s) Sword Swallower in Jaipur, India Sword Swallower in Jaipur, India |
| Greeks and Romans | 1st centuries AD | (Greece/Italy) | From India, sword swallowing spread to China, Greece, Rome, Europe, and the rest of the world. Sword swallowing was often seen at festivals throughout the ancient Roman empire. |
| Mayan Indians | 1st centuries AD |
Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico) |
In the Popul Vuh, the Maya myths, there is mention of the two main Mayan heroes doing stilt-walking and sword-swallowing. This suggests that the time of its transmission from oral to written history would have been about 2000 years ago. |
| Germans | 410 AD |
Rome (Roman Empire) |
Swordswallowers are mentioned in 410 AD during the Teutonic fight for Rome. |
| Chinese | 750 AD | (China) |
The art and practice of sword swallowing travelled north from India into China around 750 AD. Chinese Ling Troupe 1915 Chinese Sword swallower 1915 Chinese Sword swallower Shanghai 1920s Chinese Sword swallower Shanghai 1920s Sword swallower in Shanghai |
| Japanese | 750 AD | (Japan) |
Sword swallowing was popular in Japan in the 8th century and was often seen as part of an acrobatic form of entertainment known as Sangaku, which also featured juggling, tightrope walking, contortion, and other related skills. This type of performance art was "street theater" and the performers traveled throughout Japan. Sangaku, like other forms of drama popular in Japan prior to the 11th century, traced its origins to southern China and India. Japanese Sword Swallower |
| Dervish Rifai Sufis | 1182 AD | (Middle East) | The Dervish Orders of the Sufis reflect the meeting of Islam and Hindu thought in the 8th century. Dervish is Persian for "beggar." Some Dervish orders wander, others beg alms, and others live in Sufi monasteries. Some are religious entertainers hired to chant the zikr dirge, and some only perform Dervish ceremonies on special occasions. Dervishes are known for working themselves into frenzies and committing great feats of strength (this is where we get the term "Whirling Dervishes"). One of the Dervish orders founded in 1182 was the order of Rifais who eat glass, walk on hot coals, and swallow swords. |
| Europe | 1200-1893 | (Europe) |
Sword swallowing spread north from Greece and Rome into Europe at the hands of medieval jongleurs and other street performers who performed in public areas. In the Middle Ages, sword swallowers, like magicians, jugglers and other entertainers, were often condemed and persecuted by the Catholic Church. Still, in most places they were popular by the common folk, and the tradition of the wandering entertainer remained strong. By the mid-17th century, performers wandered more freely and became common sights on street corners and at festivals across Europe. Sword swallowing began to die out in Europe and Scandinavia in the late 1800s, when variety shows were formally outlawed in Sweden in 1893. |
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Sena Sama Senaa Samma First Sword Swallower in America |
November 1817 |
Pepin's Circus New York, NY (USA) |
Sena Sama (also spelled Senaa Samma) from Madras, Tamil Nadu, India was reported to be the first known sword swallower in America. A report for Nov. 11, 1817 states, "Senaa Samma appeared at St. John's Hall in New York City in a lovely exhibition of juggling and sword swallowing. Admission to see the performance was $1 for adults." Another report states that he put on America's first sword swallowing exhibition in New York City on Nov. 25, 1817. The newspaper account said that he swallowed "a sword manufactured by Mr. William Pye of New York as a substitute for the one lately stolen from him by some villain." He worked a short time with Pepin's Circus in 1818, but reports say he was already working previouly in America doing Cabaret work. He is mentioned in both "Annals of the American Circus, Vol.1. 1793-1829" by Stuart Thayer and "Freak Show: Presenting Human Oddities for Amusement and Profit" by Robert Bogdan. In 1833, Sena Sama and Hamed Ben-Alla published a 71 page booklet on magic entitled "The Whole Art of Legerdemain or Hocus Pocus" published by N.C. Hafis in NY. In the 1843 book "Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society" mentions that sword swallower Sena Sama came to New York and swallowed a sword that was 22 inches long. |
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Ramo Samee Ramo Samme Ramosamee |
Performed 1819-50 Died August 1850 |
Salem, MA (USA) London (UK) |
An advertisement in the Salem Gazette of October 5, 1819, describes the "East Indian" magician and juggler Ramo Samee as having performed "for some time past in the metropolis of England, and before all the crowned heads of Europe, who have unanimously pronounced him to be the first master of the art in their dominions." Samee closed his act with a demonstration of sword swallowing. The inspiration for one of the Western world's fundamental puzzlers, the Needle Swallowing Trick, can probably be traced back to the genius of Ramo Samee. Samee first presented the Indian needle trick to Western audiences in the 1820's, where he would swallow a hundred needles. Samee is known to have performed at a benefit on February 28, 1825 at the Adelphi Theatre, and in August 1842 at the Theatre Royal. In the 1840's he was apparently swallowing beads and horse hair separately and then regurgitating the former threaded upon the latter. He created a sensation with this at the Garrick Theatre in London. According to an article published in Robert Merry's Museum on January 1, 1849: The trick of swallowing a sword too (sic) feet long, or rather of thrusting it down his throat into the stomach up to the hilt, has become familiar to us by the public exhibitions of Ramo Samee and his companions, natives of India. Before the arrival in Europe of these jugglers, whose speculation, it is said, was most profitable, attempts had been made, but unsuccessfully, to induce other professors of the art to go to England for the purpose of exhibition. Samee also gets several mentions in Henry Mayhew's "London Labour and the London Poor", published from 1851 to 1862. According to a London press clipping, Samee died in late August, 1850 and was buried between August 28 and September 1, 1850 in London. Could this be Sena Sama? Seeking pictures and more information. Ramo Samee Obituary (1850) |
| Saib Khan Ing | Performed 1822 |
Preston (UK) |
According to broadside scrapbooks kept by William Hay in England, one broadside announces the arrival of 'Saib Khan Ing' in Preston in 1822 to 'exhibit his astonishing performances' at juggling, sword swallowing, and, 'chang[ing] himself from an Indian juggler to a British Minister of State' (Hay 11.222). |
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P.T. Barnum's American Dime Museum |
Founded 1841 Burned 1865 |
Boston, MA (USA) |
In 1841, P.T. Barnum founded the American Dime Museum in Boston, which included oddities and freaks of nature, including working acts such as sword swallowers. The "American Museum" burned down in 1865 at which time Barnum retired from show business. |
| East Indian Sword Swallowers | Performed Nov 27, 1845 |
Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
According to an article in the Philadeplphia "Pennsylvanian" newspaper dated November 27, 1845: "The rope-dancers, serpent tamers, and sword swallowers of Madras are celebrated throughout India. They will leap over elephants, and even five camels side by side; their bodies are so pliant that they will twine themselves like snakes up and down between the steps of a ladder; they walk over sharp swords; raise heavy burdens with their eyelids; and like Ramo Samee of old, are said to be able to float in the air without any visible support. Even the children exercise themselves in swallowing small sticks of bamboo, in order that they may eventually do the like with swords and daggers." |
| Martha Mitchell | Mid 1800s? | (UK) | Martha Mitchell was a female sword swallower in England in the mid 1800s. In 1855, she married Henry James Wallis who was a fairground proprietor. Her brother was Charlie Mitchell, the famous bare knuckle boxer who fought J.L. Sullivan and Gentleman Jim Corbett. Seeking pictures and more information. |
| Lawson Peck | Performed 1857 |
Peoria, IL New York (USA) |
Sword swallower Lawson Peck was known to have performed at the Peoria Museum in 1857. According to the announcement in the Peoria Transcript, dated Oct. 27, 1857, "Shoaf has made engagement with Mr. Lawson Peck from New York, the greatest sword swallower living, to give two performances Friday and Saturday nights at the museum. The sword, 23 inches long, may be inspected by the audience. He will also bare his neck and swallow the sword up to the hilt, a feat never attempted by a living man before. No additional charge to the museum." (page 4, col. 1) In the 1950s, Thurman F. (Jack) Naylor collected a number of interesting photographs, including this rare photo of a sword swallower from the 1860s. Could this have been Sword Swallower Lawson Peck? Seeking pictures and more information. |
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Sallementro The Snake Swallower |
Born c 1843 Performed 1861 |
London (UK) |
According to the 1861 "London Labour and the London Poor", Sallementro learned sword and snake swallowing at the age of 17 or 18 from his friend Clarke who was also a sword and snake swallower: "I swallow snakes, swords, and knives... It was a mate of mine that I was with that first put me up to sword and snake swallowing. I copied off him, and it took me about three months to learn it. I began with a sword first - of course not a sharp sword, but a blunt-pointed - and I didn't exactly know how to do it, for there's a trick to it. At first it turned me, putting it down my throat past my swallow, right down, about 18 inches. It made my swallow sore, very sore, and I used lemon and sugar to cure it. It was tight at first, and I kept pushing it down further and further. There's one thing - you mustn't cough, and until you're used to it, you want to very bad, and then you must pull it up again. My sword was about three-quarters of an inch wide. At first I didn't know the trick of doing it, but I found it out this way. You see, the trick is you must oil the sword - the best sweet oil, worth 14 pence a pint - and you put it on with a sponge. Then, you understand, if the sword scratches the swallow, it don't make it sore, 'cos the oil heals it up again. When first I put the sword down, before I oiled it, it used to come up quite slimy, but after the oil it slips down quite easy, and is as clean when it comes up as before it went down. The knives are easier to do than the sword because they are shorter. We puts them right down till the handle rests on the mouth. The sword is about 18 inches long, and the knives about 8 inches in the blade. People run away with the idea that you slip the blades down your breast, but I always hold mine right up with the neck bare, and they see it go into the mouth 'atween the teeth. They also fancy it hurts you, but it don't, or what a fool I should be to do it. I don't mean to say it don't hurt you at first, 'cos it do, for my swallow was very bad, and I couldn't eat anything but liquids for two months whilst I was learning. I cured my swallow whilst I was stretching it with lemon and sugar. I was the second one that ever swallowed a snake. I was about 17 or 18 years old when I learnt it. The first was Clarke as did it. He done very well with it, but he wasn't out no more than two years before me, so he wasn't known much. In the country there is some places where, when you do it, they swear you are the devil, and won't have it nohow. The snakes I use are about 18 inches long, and you must first cut the stingers out, 'cos it might hurt you. I always keep two or three by me for my performances. I keep them warm, and I give them nothing to eat but worms and gentles. I generally keep them in flannel or hay in a box. I've three at home now. When first I began swallowing snakes, they tasted queer like. They draw'd the roof of the mouth a bit. It's a roughish taste. The scales rough you a bit when you draw them up. You see, a snake will go into ever such a little hole, and they are smooth one way. The head of the snake goes about an inch and a half down the throat, and the rest of it continues in the mouth, curled 'round like. I hold him by the tail, and when I pinch it, he goes right in. You must cut the stinger out or he'll injure you. The tail is slipppery, but you nip it with the nails like pinchers. If you was to let go, he'd go right down, but most snakes will stop at two inches down the swallow, and then they bind like a ball in the mouth. I generally get my snakes by giving little boys ha'pence to go and catch 'em in the woods. I get them when I'm pitching in the country. I'll get as many as I can get, and bring 'em up to London for my engagements. When first caught, the snake is slimy, and I have to clean him by scraping him with a cloth, and then with another, until he's nice and clean. I have put 'em down slimy, on purpose to taste what it was like. It had a nasty taste, very nasty. When I exhibit, I first holds the snake up in the air and pinches the tail, to make it curl about and twist 'round my arm, to show that he is alive. Then I holds it above my mouth, and as soon as he sees the hole, in he goes. He goes wavy-like, as a ship goes, that's the comparison. I always hold my breath whilst his head is in my swallow. When he moves in the swallow, it tickles a little, but it don't make you want to retch. In my opinion, he is more glad to come up than to go down, for it seems to be too hot for him. I keep him down about two minutes. If I breathe or cough, he draws out and curls back again. I think there's artfulness in some of them big snakes, for they seem to know which is the master. I was at Wombwell's Menagerie of Wild Beasts for 3 months, and I had the care of a big snake, as thick 'round as my arm. I wouldn't attempt to put that one down my throat, for I think I might easier have done down his'n. It was a f'urren snake, all over spots, called a boa-constrictor." Seeking pictures and more information. |
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Signor Benedetti Benny-Dizzy The Great Sword-Swallower |
Born 1849 Performed 1863-95 |
Royal Aquarium Westminster Aquarium Canterbury Hall London (UK) Havana (Cuba) |
Signor Benedetti was an Italian sword swallower born in 1849, who began swallowing swords at the age of 14 in 1863. An article in the NY Times dated Dec 5, 1874 quotes a Havana, Cuban article dated Nov 29, 1874 stating, "A performance was given at the Tacon Theatre last Thursday evening, by the Schumann Troupe, to a packed house, for the benefit of the sufferers by the recent inundations at Mavari, Bayamo, and other towns of the Eastern District, particulars of which have already been forwarded to you. The Captain General was present, and the novelty of the evening was the feat of the sword swallower, Benedetti, who attempted to cram an umbrella down his throat. He swallowed His Excellency the Captain General's sword, a cane, and other articles, but could not stomach the umbrella." There is also a caricature cartoon of "Benny Dizzy, the Great Sword-Swallower" in the March 16, 1878 issue of the London "Punch" magazine mentioning "Mr. Benedetti's marvellous performance at the Royal Aquarium" at the age of 29. In 1895, the editor of a London magazine described Signor Benedetti who had just performed at the Westminster Aquarium and Canterbury Hall at the age of 46. According to the description, Benedetti stood 5 ft 8 inches tall, and swallowed a blade that was 30.25 inches long, and he had swallowed swords for at least 32 years. Seeking pictures and more information. Benedetti caricature (1878) |
| Kussmaul's Rigid Endoscope | 1868 |
Freiburg (Germany) |
The first known mention of sword swallowing in medical literature is of an unidentified professional sword swallower, who while visiting the Wolfschlucht Gasthof in Freiburg, Germany in 1868, gave a demonstration of sword swallowing which was witnessed by a local Freiburg doctor. Dr. Keller was fascinated by the feat and persuaded the sword swallower to visit his clinic and have his throat examined with a laryngeal mirror. His colleague, Dr. Müller, examined the sword swallower and suggested to his professor that the sword swallower would make a suitable subject for esophagoscopy. Dr. Adolph Kussmaul (1822—1902) carefully observed the sword swallower, being especially interested in the way he positioned his head for the passage of the long straight sword, and decided to examine him with a Désormeaux endoscope. For this purpose, he had a local instrument maker fashion tubes 47 cm long and 13 mm in diameter, one being of round and the other of elliptical section, the tubes fitted with conical wooden mandarins to facilitate insertion. Using the straight tube, mirrors and a gasoline lamp, Kussmaul inspected the esophagus and the fundus of the stomach, thereby performing the first successful esophagoscopy on a sword swallower. The sword swallower tolerated the long tubes well, but the examination was disappointing because the light was too weak to illuminate a field so far from its source. Also, despite washing out the stomach, fluid constantly collected around the tube and hindered the view. After considerable experimentation, Kussmaul and Müller managed to improve the light of their endoscope, and subsequently examined a number of patients. Kussmaul was so pleased with his success that he took the sword swallower with him to perform demonstrations in various clinics, and later enlisted other sword swallowers due to their ability to voluntarily relax the cricopharyngeal muscle and form a straight line from the pharynx to the stomach, allowing passage of the rigid endoscope. Seeking more information. |
| Sword Swallower Examination | 1868 | (?) | According to an article in "The Youth's Companion" dated October 29, 1868: "When in our youth we were taken to see a juggler who performed the well-known feat of swallowing a sword, we were taught to believe that the weapon, instead of being a rigid rod of metal, was telescopic, and doubled into itself when it was introduced into the man's mouth. A famous French physician lately experimented upon a Chinese conjuror, who swallowed a sword nearly three feet long, and permitted an examination of his body while the blade was in its living sheath. Dr. Fourle (such was the anatomists's name) was thoroughly satisfied with the honesty of the operation. They traced the point along its downward course, and felt it thirty inches from the swallower's mouth. So we may set down sword and poker swallowing as genuine feats of gymnastics." Seeking more information. |
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P.T. Barnum's Greatest Show On Earth |
Started 1871 |
Brooklyn, NY (USA) |
In 1871, P.T. Barnum established "P.T. Barnum's Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Circus", a travelling combination of circus, menagerie and museum of "freaks". In 1872, P.T. Barnum and W.C. Coup's Circus travels on a special circus train, and by 1872 was billing itself as "The Greatest Show on Earth". It went through a number of variants on these names: "P.T. Barnum's Traveling World's Fair, Great Roman Hippodrome and Greatest Show On Earth", and after an 1881 merger with James Bailey and James Hutchinson, "P.T. Barnum's Greatest Show On Earth, And The Great London Circus, Sanger's Royal British Menagerie and The Grand International Allied Shows United", was soon shortened to "Barnum & London Circus". In 1881 Barnum & Bailey's first three-ring circus is staged in New York City. Barnum and Bailey split up in 1885, but came back together again in 1888 with the "Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show On Earth", later "Barnum & Bailey Circus", which toured around the world. |
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First Known Photograph of an Indian Sword Swallower |
1863-1873 | Madras Tamil Nadu (India) |
The first known photograph of an Indian Sword Swallower was displayed in England at the South Kensington Exhibition of 1873 in an album of photographs entitled "Trades and Occupations of India" in response to English curiousity about the British Empire in India. Among the many photographers were Nicholas & Curths of Madras, Tamil Nadu, South India, who took a photo of an Indian sword swallower performing the feat sometime between 1863 and 1872. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Ling Look (David Güter) |
Performed 1870s |
Olympic Theatre New York (USA) |
David Güter performed as a sword swallower in the 1870s under the stage name "Ling Look". According to an article in the NY Times dated July 16, 1872, a novel performance was offered at the Olympic Theatre on July 15, 1872 by Ling Look, "who disposes mysteriously but satisfactorily of a blade ninety centimetres in length." For his premier number, he was known to swallow a red glowing sword. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Signor Wandana Signor Wandanus Signor Waudanus "The Wonderful Sabre, Bayonet, and Sword-Swallower" |
Performed 1870s Died May 9, 1875 |
Midwest Indiana/Missouri (USA) |
Signor Wandana was known as "The Wonderful Sabre, Bayonet, and Sword-Swallower" in the 1870s. This photograph was taken by Hugraham & Claflin's New Photographic Rooms, 32 1/2 East Washington St. Indianapolis, Ind. Wandana died on May 9, 1875 of internal injuries sustained after a sword swallowing feat went wrong. His obituary was published in the Chicago Tribune on May 11, 1875 entitled "Death of a Sword Swallower": "Calais, MO, May 10---Signor Waudanus, the sword-swallower, while performing last week cut himself internally. Inflammation occurred, and he died last evening." Seeking photos and more information. |
| Lady Margurite | Performed 1880s? |
Davenport, IA (USA) |
Lady Margurite was a female circus sword swallower who may have performed in the late 1800s. This photo was taken of her in Davenport, Iowa. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Chevalier Cliquot "The World's Greatest Sword Phenomenon" Fred McLand Fred McLone Frederick McLone |
Born 1862 Performed 1878-1902+ |
Forepaugh Circus Chicago, IL (USA) London (UK) |
First well-known North American sword swallower, Chevalier Cliquot was one of the most prominent sword-swallowers of his time and was known by the description "The World's Greatest Sword Phenomenon". In actuality, Cliquot was an American named Frederick McLone or Fred McLand who was born in Chicago, IL, although the story was perpetuated that he was a "French-Canadian" born in Quebec, Canada in 1862 who ran away from home in Quebec at an early age to join a travelling circus bound for South America. On seeing an old man swallow a small machete in Buenos Ayres, he allegedly took up learning sword swallowing around 1878. In 1894, while swallowing 14 nine-inch bayonet swords at once in New York, Cliquot had the misfortune to have a skeptical audience, one of whom, a medical man who ought to have known better, rushed forward and impulsively dragged out the swords, inflicting injuries on Cliquot which incapacitated him for months. A NY Times article dated Jan 21, 1894 stated, "'The Chevalier Cliquot' astonished doctors at the Metropolitan Throat Hospital. When he seemed in pain with fourteen swords down his throat, Dr. Hope yanked them out in a bunch. McLone in bed under morphine's influence. 'Oh, I'm all right,' groaned Frederick McLone, "the Chevalier Cliquot" sword swallower, as he tossed uneasily on a bed in Room 66 of the Union Square Hotel last evening, when his manager, William Howell asked him how he was getting along. McLone was under the influence of morphine administered by Dr. William Shannon, who believes his exhibition of sword swallowing at the Metropolitan Throat Hospital at 351 West Thirty-fourth Street on Friday brought about slight inflammation of the stomach and oesophagus, and that there are slight lacerations of the throat. McLone is a handsome little man, with a physique that is like that of Rowell, the walker. He was born in Quebec in 1862, and when a schoolboy became fascinated with a circus show and ran away from home to become an acrobat. A family of saltimbancos attached to a circus took an interest in him, and taught him to tumble and do feats of strength. He had just become expert enough to be worth a salary when he saw Battin the sword swallower perform some of his feats, and detected him in trickery. McLone experimented with himself, first with a wire with a knob at the end, until he had overcome the muscular and nervous resistance of his throat. Then he practiced with a sword until he was able to swallow a blade of about twenty inches up to its hilt. Constant practice made his throat callous to or familiar with intrusion, and fourteen years ago, when the United States man-of-war Lancaster was at Algiers, and a minstrel show was given on board, he appeared as the "American Acrobat" and gave an exhibition of sword swallowing without using a "sheath" or any device to lessen the severity of the ordeal to which his throat was put. His pseudonym was given him two years later in a Paris cafe, after a bottle of "The Widow's" had been splashed over him. He last appeared in public in Pittsburg three weeks ago and was to appear in Montreal to-morrow, but the date has been canceled. To kill time, he and his manager had gone to Boston, and his ability to swallow almost anything, except an insult, was demonstrated before Dr. Bowditch, Professor of Physiology at Harvard College, and others in B.F. Keith's office in the Gaiety Theatre. Dr. Bowditch, at the end of the exhibition asked: "Can you swallow anything?" "Yes," replied McLone. "Then swallow my cane." "I will if you'll wipe the ferrule." This was done, and the cane was pushed 22 inches down the Chevalier's throat, and the spectators marveled. The staff at the Metropolitan Throat Hospital deny that McLone was invited to appear before them. They say that he was brought there by his manager. They are familiar with the feats that a throat accustomed to distension will endure, and say that, physically considered, what McLone did on Friday was startling, but not especially wonderful. He first caused the 22 inch blade of a Chassepot sabre to disappear up to the hilt, and then swallowed four sword blades twenty inches long. The swords were made for the purpose, and the hilts were in the same plane as the blades, which fitted into each other like a nest of spoons. Then, taking the sabre, Cliquot fastened at right angles to the hilt a hollow rod of iron, four feet long, and to each end of the rod attached a dumbbell maker "14 pounds." Then, raising the rod until the point of the sabre was in his mouth, he swallowed it again, as he had done when nothing was attached to it. While the sabre was in his oesophagus McLone gave the bar a half twist, something he had never before attempted, according to Manager Howell. The doctors were asked if they wished to see a fowling piece attached to the bar and discharged while four inches of the sabre were out of the juggler's mouth, so that the sabre would force the blade down to the hilt, but they declined, and McLone prepared to do the next feat, that of swallowing fourteen swords, the blades of which were like those used in the second feat. Howell admits that when the sabre with the bar and the dumbbells was drawn from its living sheath, McLone appeared to suffer and retched, and that he should have then desisted, or have been made to do so. The fourteen swords were swallowed like the bunch of four, and the ordeal was little more severe, except that the distention of the throat was greater. Before swallowing the swords, McLone said that if any one wanted to draw them, it should be done one by one and not in a bunch. The swords were not half their length in McLone's economy when he appeared to be suffering and turned pale. Howell had turned his back when they were beginning to disappear, and he heard one of the doctors say, "My God, this is going too far." He turned to see Dr. G. B. Hope grasp the swords by the butts, and sharply withdraw them, instead of pulling them out quickly, one by one, as a card player deals cards, and as McLone does on stage. McLone gave a groan and leaned forward. He appeared to be in great agony, and could not speak for several moments. He then complained of severe pain in the stomach and throat. After a hypodermic injection of morphine had been given to him he was taken to his hotel in a cab. It was at first feared that either his throat had been lacerated or that there was a puncture of the stomach, and that an operation would be necessary, but there was no hemmorhage, and his condition had so far improved yesterday afternoon that he was able to drink some kumyss. Manager Howell was convinced that the new trick of turning the sabre with the bar and dumbbells attached was too great a strain for organs that had been strained and stretched to fit them for abnormal uses. He expected, however that McLone would be able to go to Toronto to fill an engagement at the end of this week. His wife, who aids him in his performances, was so satisfied with his condition that she went out for a walk with a friend. The staff of the hospital say they were not responsible for McLone's collapse. Before he gave his exhibition, his throat was examined, and while it was found to have become distended, it appeared to be healthy. McLone admitted that frequently after he had been idle for some time, he swallowed food with difficulty, and had several times been almost choked by food. He also suffered from dyspepsia when not "in practice", but found relief when he swallowed a sword. He was advised not to attempt any feat that would tax his throat more than it had been, and to keep it exercised." A follow-up story in the NY Times dated Jan 22, 1894 stated, "Frederick McLone, the sword swallower known on the stage as Chevalier Cliquot, who is suffering from inflammation of the stomach through the twisting of a sabre he had pushed down his throat at an exhibition, had greatly improved yesterday. Dr. William Shannon, his physician, says McLone may sit up in bed today." Cliquot swallowed up to 22 inch blades nearly every day for over 23 years at least until 1902 and possibly beyond that. Cliquot could swallow a 22-inch cavalry sword without difficulty, and his act included swallowing an electric light bulb connected to an 8-volt battery, up to fourteen 19-inch bayonet swords at one time, and his major trick was to swallow a bayonet sword, weighted with a cross-bar and two 18-pound dumbbells. In another feat, he would partially swallow a bayonet weighted with a crossbar, and allow the rest of the blade to be "kicked" by the recoil of a rifle which was fixed to a spike in the center of the bar and then fired by his sister. Cliquot told Houdini that Delno Fritz was his sword swallowing pupil in the early 1890s. Cliquot was known to have performed with the Forepaugh Circus, did lectures before physicians and students at the Rush Medical College in Chicago and the University of of Liverpool in England, and finally "reformed" and ended up as a music hall agent in England. Seeking photos and more information. Cliquot injury article 2 (1894) Chevalier Cliquot (1896) Chevalier Cliquot (1896) Cliquot with Forepaugh Circus Cliquot Poster (1899) Cliquot Poster (1902) |
| Harry Parsons | Died 1880 |
Cleveland, OH (USA) |
According to an obituary in the NY Times dated Dec 24, 1880, "Harry Parsons, a professional sword-swallower, fatally injured himself while performing the feat in Cleveland, Ohio, on Monday." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Gustaf Westerlund Brothers Westerlund |
Born Sept 26, 1854 Performed 1880 |
Brothers Westerlund (Finland) |
Gustaf Westerlund (born Sept 26, 1854) and his brother Alexander Westerlund (born Sept 6, 1859) performed together in Finland under the name "Veljekset Westerlund" (Brothers Westerlund) doing an acrobatic act which also contained sword swallowing. An advertisement from August 5, 1880 states "...swallows in wonderful accuracy 24 inch long iron swords". Seeking photos and more information. |
| Barnum & Baileys Circus | 1881 |
New York, NY (USA) |
Barnum and Bailey's first three ring circus is staged in New York City in 1881. Barnum and Bailey split up in 1885, but came back together again in 1888 with the "Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show On Earth", later "Barnum & Bailey Circus", which toured around the world. |
| Unknown Sword Swallower |
Performed Dec. 20, 1883 Died Dec. 28, 1883 |
(USA) | According to the book "Bizarre Medical Abnormalities", in 1883 Gussenbauer gives an account of a juggler who had an accident on December 20, 1883. When the juggler turned his head to bow an acknowledgment of applause while swallowing a sword, he thus brought his upper incisors against the sword, which broke off and slipped into his stomach. To relieve suffocation, the sword was pushed further down. Gastrotomy was performed, and the piece of sword 11 inches long was extracted; as there was perforation of the stomach before the operation, the patient died of peritonitis on December 28, 1883. |
| Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show |
Toured US 1883 Toured Europe 1903-06 |
(USA) (EUROPE) |
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show first tours the US in 1883 and later employs sword swallowers starting in 1898. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with BBWWS. |
| Ringling Brothers Circus | 1884 | (USA) | Ringling Brothers Circus begins in 1884. |
| Unknown Sword Swallower | Died 1885 | (USA) | According to the book "Bizarre Medical Abnormalities", in 1885 Gross speaks of a man of thirty who was in the habit of giving exhibitions of sword-swallowing in public houses, and who injured his esophagus to such an extent as to cause abscess and death. |
|
Niels Le Tort Niels Edvard Jacobsen |
Born April 29, 1856 Performed 1887 Died Feb 7, 1929 |
(Denmark/Sweden) | Niels Edvard Jacobsen was born April 29, 1856 in Tröröd, Sölleröd Sogn, north of Copenhagen, Denmark. He started poor, and after military service, he studied hatmaking with a hatmaker in Copenhagen. He was married in 1881, and upon his first child's birth in 1883, he gave up his hatmaking occupation for the life of an artist. It is known that by 1887 he was working as a sword swallower (his seven swords are preserved in a collection). In 1893, he showed a banner at a fair, and at this point became a sideshow tent owner. In 1895 he displayed a giant woman, and in 1896 he traveled around with a "hairy woman", but he also continued to work as a magician. In 1896, he and his wife were divorced. In 1891 Jacobsen requested from the king that he be allowed to take the name "LeTort". At first he was known as Niels Edvard Jacobsen Letort. There was also a magician named Professor Joseph H. Le Tort who had been performing since 1880, and there is speculation that the two magicians met and Niels got to buy some of J. Le Tort's props, and even his name, which was not an uncommon practice at the time. Letort travelled around Denmark, and in 1899 he toured further into Malmö and other areas of Sweden, where he became very popular. In October, 1900 he returned to Denmark, but didn't receive as much publicity there as he did in Sweden. He returned to Sweden, and toured as far as Finland, where he didn't receive quite the success as he did in Sweden. He even performed at the Follies-Bergère in Paris (he was well-known even in France and could speak some French). Letort was very elegant - tall, with pointed mustach, white tie with diamond pin, and rings on his fingers. At a performance in Gävle, Sweden in 1901, Letort met a French engineer, showman, fellow magician and mechanic, Joseph Couprant, who was showing "living picture" films. They decided to join up, so Couprant could strengthen Letort's program by showing films. They opened a business for photographic articles in Stockholm, where they started the "American Theater", Stockholm's first "standing theater". Letort thrived here also, together with his second wife and assistant, Miss Hetty Dené Moore, who was English, 22 years younger than Letort, whom he had met during a tour to England, fell in love with, and married. In May 1902, Letort and Couprant moved to Göteborg, where they opened the first cinemagraphic theater in the city and combined variety acts with film. Letort and Couprant returned to Stockholm where they continued their photo business. 1904 Letort moved to Malmö and became the city's movie pioneer. After a while, be moved back to Copenhagen, where he also became a movie pioneer. Letort had made good money as a magician, but had even better success with the new film industry. Around 1910, Letort and his wife moved to her homeland of England. In 1924 the couple moved back to Odense, where Niels died on February 7, 1929 at the age of 73. His wife lived until May 12, 1962. Seeking photos and more information. |
|
Professor Griffin Yankee Yogi Mons. F. Le Costro (Charles E. Griffin) |
Born June 16, 1859? Born Dec. 17, 1862? Performed 1889-1907 Died Jan 3, 1914 |
Hilliard & DeMott's Circus Paris Pavilion Shows Pullman & Mack's Circus Sells Brothers Circus Hurlburt & Hunting Circus Bob Hunting Circus Frank A Robbin's Circus Ringling Brothers Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (United States) (Europe) |
Charles Eldridge Griffin was born on June 16, 1859 in St. Joseph, MO. (Some accounts claim he was born in New York City on December 17, 1862). Throughtout his lifetime, Griffin performed as an magician, illusionist, conjurer, yogi, ventriloquist, contortionist, fire-eater, sword swallower, hypnotist, and lecturer with a variety of shows, including Bob Hunting Circus, Ringling Brothers Circus Sideshow and Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. While he was a child, his family moved to Albia, Iowa. His father John Griffin was Monroe County Superintendent of schools and county clerk of courts. His mother Fanny was a musician, and Charles and his 3 siblings were outgoing extroverts with a penchant for performing (his brothers later worked in the circus business and his sister became a popular platform speaker). At the age of 16, Griffin toured school houses, town halls, and county fairs with his own "one man valise troupe" where he probably began to perfect his talents as a magician and ventriloquist. In 1881, Griffin joined Hilliard & DeMott's Circus as a magician and lecturer. After it folded, he traveled to France to become general manager of the Paris Pavilion Shows. Then he joined the Pullman & Mack's Circus as "The Comic Yankee Conjurer" from 1884-1885. In 1885 he joined the Sells Brothers Circus as a "lecturer in side show and featured in concert (Fire Act)." In 1886, he left Sells Brothers to become a member of of the newly formed Hurlburt & Hunting Circus in New York City (later known as the Bob Hunting's New York Circus). In 1889, at the age of 26, Griffin performed as "Professor Griffin, the Yankee Yogi, Magician and Sword Swallower" on the Bob Hunting Circus according to the 1889 Hunting route book, and he was also listed on the Bob Hunting Circus program as "Manager All Privileges". On the front of the program, it offers for sale a "Large book, 10 cents" that Griffin wrote that teaches "Magic, Ventrioloquism, Fire Eating, Sword Swallowing, and Hypnotism". In the 1892 Hunting route book Griffin is listed as the "Illusionist and Ventriloquist", and he was also known to have performed as a fire-eater. In the 1890s, Griffin published the "Showman's Guide", the "Showman's Book of Wonders", and he was the founder of Griffin's Conjuring College in New York City. In 1896, he published a booklet entitled "How To Be A Contortionist! Bending Made Easy: A Practical Self-Instructor by a Well-Known Professional". Griffin worked with the Hunting Circus for 12 years from 1886 to 1898 where he eventually owned and operated the sideshow. In 1898, he held a similar position with the Frank A Robbin's Circus. In 1899 he became a performer and stage manager with the Ringling Brothers Circus Side Show based in Baraboo, WI where he worked for 4 years from 1898 to 1902 as magician, ventriloquist, as well as "Lecturer and Sword Swallower". His wife Octavia worked with him as a snake charmer, as well as his brothers Frank and Fred, and Fredi's wife Julia as a mind reader. In June 1902, at the end of the 1902 season, James A. Bailey, who was a major owner of the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, visited the show and asked Griffin and his family to tour with the Wild West Show in Europe. In December 1902, the Buffalo Bill Show sailed for England. Griffin and his family joined them in March 1903. After landing at Liverpool, Griffin and his family joined the show in Manchester where Griffin began performing his "Yankee Magic" in the sideshow as the "Yankee Yogi and Conjuror", with his wife and son working with him. In 1904, Griffin took over as manager of the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. In April 1905, the show opened in Paris through June 4, 1905. From November 1905 through March 1906, the show wintered in Marseilles France. The final season in Europe opened in March 4, 1906 and toured Italy, Hungary, Russia, Germany, and Belgium. After coming back to the US in late October, 1906, Griffin began writing the book "Four Years in Europe With Buffalo Bill". Shortly after arriving back in the US, Griffin suffered a mild stroke. However, he rejoined the Buffalo Bill Show for the 1907 season. In the fall of 1907, Griffin returned to Albia, Iowa, where he focused on writing and publishing, occasionally entertaining local residents with performances at Albia's Opera House. In 1908, he finished writing the book "Four Years in Europe With Buffalo Bill", of which 500 copies were published in Albia, Iowa in 1908. Griffin suffered a more serious stroke and died in Albia, IA on January 3, 1914 at the age of 54. Griffin's name also appears in the list of persons associated with Buffalo Bill Cody, referencing Sarah J. Blackstone's book "Buckskins, Bullets, and Business: A History of Buffalo Bill's Wild West" (Greenwood Press, 1986), though he and his autobiography are only briefy mentioned there. More substantial information was found in the William F. Cody Collection in an article from Palimpsest by H. Roger Grant, based on interviews with Charles Griffith's nephew, John W. Griffith. It is titled "An Iowan, with Buffalo Bill: Charles Eldridge Griffin in Europe, 1903-1906., is 13 pages long, and references Griffin's stage and pen name of Mons. F. Le Costro. In the booklet, Griffin gives instructions for both fire eating, and nine books listed that he authored for vaudeville acts. Seeking photos and more information. Charles E. Griffin (1907) |
|
A.E. Welsh Circassian Sword Swallower |
Performed 1880s-90s? |
New York, NY (USA) |
"Circassian" Sword Swallower A.E. Welsh was photographed by Charles Eisenmann in New York, probably in the 1880s-1890s. While it was somewhat common to see "Circassian" women who worked as snake charmers in the late 1800s, it was extremely rare to find a "Circassian" who worked as a sword swallower. Could this photo of an unknown Circassian sword swallower be a later photo of A.E. Welsh? Seeking photos and more information. A.E. Welsh (enlarged) A.E. Welsh (face close-up) A.E. Welsh signature Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower, later A.E. Welsh? |
| Patrick Mulraney | Died June 29, 1891 |
Columbus, OH (USA) |
According to an obituary in the NY Times dated June 29, 1891, "COLUMBUS, Ohio, June 29, 1891 -- Patrick Mulraney, a juggler and sword swallower, injured himself fatally yesterday during his performance at Olentangy Villa. Instead of using the slender sword he was accustomed to, Mulraney took for use in his sword swallowing act a violin bow. Twice he essayed to swallow this, but failed each time, desisting on account of the intense pain caused by inserting the bow in his throat. He immediately commensed vomitting blood, and continued to have these paroxysms until this morning, when he died." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Annie Roy Anna Roy Annie Wiser Anna Elizabeth Wright |
Born March 15, 1863 Performed c 1893-1897 Died Nov 8, 1941 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus Ringling Brothers Circus (USA) |
Annie Roy was one of the first female sword swallowers with Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circuses in the mid 1890s. Born an albino as Annie Wiser on March 15, 1863 of John and Martha Wiser (probably in Cochran Mills, PA), Annie was the sister of albino entertainer Louis Wiser (born 1865 in Cochran Mills, PA), who may have later reinvented himself to become known as "Unzie The Albino". In 1891 at about the age of 28, Annie was married to an albino gentleman of Scotch-Irish descent named Rob Roy, who was said to have been "The First Albino Born in the US". In 1893, Annie was listed in the Barnum and Bailey Circus route book as the "White Madagascar Moor". Other photos show Anna and Rob Roy together in 1893 and 1894. In 1894, Rob Roy was listed with Ringling Brothers Circus, and a photo of Annie and Rob was included in the Ringling Brothers World's Greatest Shows route book. On March 26, 1894, the albino couple had their first and only son, also albino, who they named King Charles Roy. Rob Roy performed as "The Albino Dislocationist" with Barnum and Bailey Circus between 1894-1897, and then performed with Barnum and Bailey in Europe from 1897-1901 (Delno Fritz was the featured sword swallower with Barnum & Bailey during this period in Europe, and there is no mention of Annie Roy during this period). In a May 21, 1903 article in "The Realm Magazine of Marvels", Rob Roy and sword swallower Mlle Edith Clifford were featured together with Barnum and Bailey Circus, and in 1904, Rob Roy and Mlle Edith Clifford were featured together on a Barnum and Bailey poster in Madison Square Garden, NY. (No further information on Rob Roy found after 1904). In 1912, Anna Roy bought a farm in Crawford County, PA which she later gave to her son King Charles Roy. King Charles Roy was known as "The First Albino Child Born of Albino Parents in the US.", performed with various circuses as an "Albino Contortionist", and was good friends with Frank Lentini, the "Three Legged Man". In 1919, (or possibly June 1918?), one of King Charles Roy's children was born on a circus train which had a wreck in Ivanhoe, IN, and King Charles was presumed dead, although he later showed up alive. In 1926 King Charles Roy was married to Minnie Bell Wiser (born 1904 in Apollo, Indiana County, PA), bought a house in Jamestown, PA in 1928, and retired from the circus in 1932. King Charles Roy had 9 children, 6 of whom were albinos, and 3 who were not. In 1938-39, his mother Annie Roy moved in with King Charles Roy, and according to her obituary, she died at 10:30am on November 8, 1941 in Jamestown, PA at the age of 78. Her obituary and the deed to the Jamestown house list her name as "Anna Elizabeth Wright". (Could she have later remarried a Mr. Wright?) King Charles Roy owned several businesses including a barbershop and the Jamestown Bait Hatchery, and died on February 26, 1980 at the age of 86. Annie Roy had two sets of swords and bayonets, one with a pearl handle, and another etched with a lion's head. Annie's swords are now owned by Lyle Tuttle.
Seeking photos and more information. Annie Roy Louis Wiser at 30 "Unzie The Albino" Rob & Annie Roy, Ringling Routebook (1893) |
| Chicago World's Fair | 1893 |
World's Columbian Exposition Chicago World's Fair Chicago, IL (USA) |
Between May 1, 1893 and October 31, 1893, an estimated 27 million people attended Chicago's World's Columbian Exposition -- officially planned to celebrate the European discovery of the New World -- and marvelled at the Exposition's neo-classical vision of ordered community, cultural displays, and artistic exhibits. The World's Columbian Exposition, situated on a 1.3 mile long strip in Jackson Park, Chicago, and introduced a wealth of inventions to America and the world. It was at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair that sword swallowing was first introduced to America at large, and it was here that sword swallowing first became accepted as popular in America by being one of the hit features of the fair. The Chicago World's Fair was so popular in 1893, that it was later replicated again with the Chicago World's Fair of 1933-1934 where sword swallowing was again one of the most popular highlights. |
| Albert Heiling |
Born 1874 Injured Jan 26, 1895 |
Muskegon, MI (USA) |
According to an article in the NY Times dated Jan 27, 1895: "MUSKEGON, Mich., Jan. 26 - Albert Heiling aged twenty-one, while practicing a sword-swallowing act, drove the sword into his stomach beyond his reach. Physicians were called and cut him open as the only means of recovering the sword. Heiling may die." Seeking photos and more information. |
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P. Widowski "World Champion Sword Swallower" |
1890s? | (Germany?) |
P. Widowski was known as "World Champion Sword Swallower" of his time (also labeled "Schwertschlucker" or "Sword Swallower" in German). Seeking photos and more information.. |
| Bizarre Medical Abnormalities | Published 1897 | (USA) | According to the book "Bizarre Medical Abnormalities" published in 1897: "There are many cases on record in which injury to the stomach has been due to some mistake or accident in the juggling process of knife-swallowing or sword-swallowing. The records of injuries of this nature extend back many hundred years, and even in the earlier days the delicate operation of gastrotomy sometimes with a successful issue, was performed upon persons who had swallowed knives. The physiologic explanation of sword-swallowing is quite interesting. We know that when we introduce the finger, a spoon, brush, etc. into the throat of a patient, we cause extremely disagreeable symptoms. There is nausea, gagging, and considerable hindrance with the function of respiration. It therefore seems remarkable that there are people whose physiologic construction is such that, without apparent difficulty, they are enabled to swallow a sword many inches long. Many of the exhibitionists allow the visitors to touch the stomach and outline the point of the sabre through the skin. The sabre used is usually very blunt and of rounded edges, or if sharp, a guiding tube of thin metal is previously swallowed. The explanation of these exhibitions is as follows: The instrument enters the mouth and pharynx, then the esophagus, traverses the cardiac end of the stomach, and enters the latter as far as the antrum of the pylorus, the small culdesac of the stomach. In their normal state in the adult these organs are not in a straight line, but are so placed by the passage of the sword. In the first place the head is thrown back, so that the mouth is in the direction of the esophagus, the curves of which disappear or become less as the sword proceeds; the angle that the esophagus makes with the stomach is obliterated, and finally the stomach is distended in the vertical diameter and its internal curve disappers, thus permitting the blade to traverse the greater diameter of the stomach. According to Guyot-Daubès, these organs, in a straight line, extend a distance of from 55 to 62 cm., and consequently the performer is enabled to swallow an instrument of this length. The length is divided as follows:
Mouth and pharynx.....10 to 12 cm.
These acrobats with the sword have rendered important service to medicine. It was through the good offices of a sword-swallower that
the Scotch physician, Dr. Stevens, was enabled to make his experiments on digestion. He caused this assistant to swallow small metallic tubes pierced with holes. They were filled, according to Reaumer's method, with pieces of meat. After a certain length of time, he would have the acrobat disgorge the tubes, and in this way he observed to what degree the process of digestion had taken place. It was also probably the sword-swallower who showed the physicians to what extent the pharynx could be habituated to contract, and from this resulted the invention of the tube of Faucher, the esophageal sound, lavage of the stomach, and illumination of this organ by electric light." |
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Enno Strauss-Hassan Enno Strauss-Hanson "The World's Youngest Sword Swallower" |
? |
England (UK) |
Enno Strauss-Hassan (or Hanson) was one of England's greatest sword swallowers, and at one time, was known as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". He was one of the first to experiment with swallowing glass neon tubes which eventually killed him. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
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Miss Victorina (Kitty Fisher) Joe Van Victorina Kar-Mi (Joseph B. Hallworth) |
Performed 1890-1902 | (USA) |
A performing husband and wife team in the 1890s, husband Joe Van Victorina (Joseph B. Hallworth, also known as "Kar-mi") and wife Miss Victorina (Kitty Fisher, a native of Berlin) both swallowed swords in their act - Kar-mi would swallow a loaded gun barrel, and while it was down his throat, would shoot a cracker off a man's head, while Miss Victorina was said to have swallowed a record 16 swords at once around the turn of the century. In 1899 the Victorinas put out a "Text Book On The Art of Sword Swallowing - Explaining How To Do It Sixteen Different Ways" with some mythical tips on how to swallow swords, some written in an untranslatable ancient script! The Boston Herald of December 28th, 1902, described Victorina's performance: "By long practice she has accustomed herself to swallow swords, daggers, bayonets, walking sticks, rods, and other dangerous articles. Her throat and food passages have become so expansive that she can swallow three long swords almost up to the hilts, and can accommodate a dozen shorter blades." On one occasion, while sword-swallowing in Boston, a sword pierced a vein in her throat. The blade was half-way down, but instead of immediately pulling it out, she pushed it further in. She was laid up in a hospital for 3 months after this performance. In Chicago she had an even narrower escape. One day while performing at a museum on Clark Street, Victorina passed a long thin dagger down her throat. In withdrawing it, the blade snapped in two, leaving the pointed portion some distance in her passage. Dropping the hilt on the floor, she leaned forward, and placing her finger and thumb down her throat, she succeeded in catching the end of the blade and pulled it out. Seeking photos and more information. Miss Victorina (1890s) Miss Victorina (1890s) Miss Victorina swallowing 10 (1890s) The Victorinas? (1890s) Victorina's Booklet (1899) Kar-Mi Poster (1899) Kar-Mi Poster (1899) |
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Joe Riley "Sensational Sword Swallower" Joseph Riley Fleming |
Born c. 1866 Performed 1898-1914 Lived to 1929 Died ? |
Hillburn, NY Ramapo, NY Rockland County, NY (USA) |
Joe Riley was born as Joseph R. Fleming around 1866 in Hillburn, NY where he lived most of his life with the exception of when he was on the road performing either with his own show or on vaudeville. He started out as a pencil artist and did some of his best artwork around 1892. His first stage performance took place around the time of the Spanish-American War in 1898 when he was 32 years old. According to his pitch card, he was known as the "Sensational Sword Swallower", and his act was described as "presenting a realistic and thrilling scientific exhibition in the art of "Swallowing of the Swords", also carving-knives, daggers, shears, saws, cimeters (sic), curved swords, bayonets and other allied props and various other articles of steel without any deception at all." His performing career ended in 1914 during World War I when his eyesight began to grow dim and he began to go blind. In 1929 when he was 63 years old and living in Ramapo, NY, an article was written about him that said that he was totally blind and had learned Braille, learned how to walk with a white cane, and was survived by only one brother. It is not known exactly when he died. Seeking photos and more information. Joe Fleming art (1892) Joe Fleming art (1892) Joe Riley article (1929) Joe Riley article (1929) |
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Delmo Fritz Delno Fritz |
Born 1875-76? Performed 1886-1932? Died 1930s? |
Huber's Museum Barnum & Bailey Circus Barnes Circus Hagenbeck Wallace World Museum Wilkes-Barre, PA Los Angeles, CA (USA) |
Delno Fritz was born in Wilkes-Barre, PA sometime between 1875 to 1876. As a child, he lost a leg while hopping a freight train in Wilkes-Barre, so he wore a wooden leg and walked with a cane the rest of his life. According to one story, Fritz studied sword swallowing under Cliquot in the early 1890s. According to an article in the NY Times dated Sept. 2, 1894 at, "Huber's 14th St. Museum - First apprearance here of LEONZO BROTHERS and their famous company of players in the grand local drama, The Dog Spy. A great production, curio halls, HINDOO GIANTS 8 feet tall, PRINCE TINYMITE, 19 years old and 21 inches high, MICHAEL Strong Man, Prof. HORN trained birds, DELMO FRITZ and MAUD CHURCHILL, sword swallowers, EMMA BROWN, spotted girl, ROSE CALLAHAN, bearded lady." In 1896, Fritz performed as a sword swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus. On March 10, 1898, the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal published a story called "Two Curious Freaks" which was taken from the Feb 2, 1896 article published in the Lancet magazine, which included an 'account of two sword swallowing performers (Delno Fritz and Young Herrmann) with the Barnum & Bailey Circus at the Olympia'. In 1899, Fritz taught sword swallowing to 13 year old Edith Clifford. In May, 1899, the Barnum and Bailey Circus went to Nottingham, England and travelled between cities on 4 huge trains, each with 17 carriages, with Delno Fritz as the featured sword swallower. According to an article in The English Illustrated Magazine around 1899, Delno Fritz had already "been swallowing swords, bayonets, and such delicacies for 14 years. His first appearance, at the age of 11, was made with his father, for Fritz inherits his peculiar appetite, his father having been a famous swallower of swords, walking-sticks, and umbrellas. Fritz is a devoted cyclist, and something of an amateur baseball player." Fritz was photographed on Oct 3, 1899. Fritz was known for swallowing a bayonet attached to a rifle, which when fired, would drive the sword down his throat. Fritz was married to sword swallower Maude D'Lean or Maud D'Auldin, and they performed "Sword and Gun Manipulation" together with the Hagenbeck Wallace Sideshow in 1912. Fritz was also a personal friend of Harry Houdini, who in his 1920 book "The Miracle Mongers", wrote about Fritz, "Delno Fritz was not only an excellent sword-swallower, but a good showman as well. The last time I saw him he was working the 'halls' in England. I hope he saved his money, for he was a clean man with a clean reputation, and, I can truly say, he was a master in his manner of indulging his appetite for the cold steel." (During his time in the UK, Fritz actually bought a theatre in Scotland). In 1920, Fritz's wife Maude D'Lean died from a sword swallowing accident caused by a nicked blade during a performance onboard a ship before the King and Queen of England. Fritz then taught sword swallowing to his 20 year old niece Edna Price starting around 1920. In the 1920's, when his niece Edna wanted to go out on a date with someone that "Uncle Delno" did not approve of, Edna would hide his wooden leg to make her escape. Starting in 1920, Fritz and Price performed together with the Barnes Circus. A Los Angeles Times article dated Dec 7, 1924 stated, "Los Angeles is to have a school for sword swallowers. Delno Fritz, internationally known eater of steel, has come to Los Angeles to settle down after years with circuses and carnivals. He is preparing to open a class teaching how to swallow. His primary classes for beginners will start with table knives and desk shears, with advanced courses to be given later in actual consumption of full-length army sabres. At present he is enrolling his classes at the World Museum, opposite the Rosslyn annex on Main street, where he is also giving demonstrations in the art to curious spectators." Apparently his time in California landed him some movie roles in Hollywood. In 1925, "Delmo" Fritz was featured as the sword swallower in the Tod Browning film "The Unholy Three" and in the 1932 cult classic movie "Freaks". Fritz performed into the 1930s, and died from pneumonia which developed as a result of a screw that came loose and lodged in his lung while testing a bronchialscope for doctors in Pennsylvania. Delno Fritz was buried in the Fritz family plot somewhere around Wilkes-Barre, PA. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. Delno Fritz and cane with Barnum/Bailey (1896) Delno Fritz with Barnum/Bailey in England (1899?) Delno Fritz (1899?) Delno Fritz (10/3/1899) Delno Fritz article (1924) Delno Fritz (1932) Delno Fritz (1932) |
| Barnum and Bailey Circus | May 1899 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus Nottingham (England) |
In May, 1899, the Barnum and Bailey Circus went to Nottingham, England and travelled between cities on 4 huge trains, each with 17 carriages. Delno Fritz was the featured sword swallower in 1899. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Mlle. Amy | Performed 1900 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus (Germany) |
In 1900, the Barnum and Bailey Circus performed in Germany, and published the book "Das Buch der Wunder" ("The Book of Wonders"). Barnum and Bailey produced editions in every country they visited, and the book was sold for double the price of a program, and half the price for a medium-priced seat at the show. Mlle Amy was featured as "the female sword swallower" in the edition published especially for Germany in 1900. Could this have been an early stage name for Mlle. Edith Clifford before she started with Barnum and Bailey in Vienna in 1901? Seeking photos and more information. |
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Mlle. Edith Clifford Edith Clifford Edith Bauer "Champion Sword Swallower of the World" |
Born Nov 22, 1886 Performed 1899-1922 Died Sept 3, 1942 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus Ringling Bros Circus Gollmer's Circus Canton, OH (USA) |
Edith Clifford was born in England on November 22, 1886 of John Clifford and Emily Rivers Clifford. The Clifford family moved from England to Boston, Massachusetts in the US sometime after Edith's birth, with some records crediting her as being "from Boston". Clifford began swallowing swords in 1899 at the age of 13 after learning from sword swallower Delno Fritz. Clifford was said to be "generously endowed" and "possessed of more than ordinary personal charms, a refined taste for dressing both herself and her stage, and an unswerving devotion to her art", and she "perfected an act that found favor in the Royal Courts of Europe". Clifford married Thomas Holmes who worked for Barnum and Bailey Circus as the "Elastic Stretch Man", they adopted the stage name "The Cliffords", and joined Barnum & Bailey Circus in Vienna Austria in 1901, where Clifford became famous for swallowing razor blades, scissors, saw blades and bayonets. They worked with the Barnum Show for five years from 1901 through 1906 and had two daughters, Edith and Margaret, before Thomas Holmes died. In a May 21, 1903 article in "The Realm Magazine of Marvels", Clifford and albino sword swallower Rob Roy were featured together in the Barnum and Bailey Circus, and in 1904, Clifford and Rob Roy were featured together on a Barnum and Bailey poster in Madison Square Garden, NY. Clifford performed under the name "Mlle. Edith Clifford, Champion Sword Swallower of the World", and was said to have swallowed 18 to 20 inch blades without a problem, and a longer blade up to 26 inches long, as well as 10, 16, and possibly up to 24 swords at one time. In 1912, Clifford was married in her second marriage to Karl Bauer, a German circus trapeze artist, who apparently served as Edith’s assistant when the couple married, performing under the stage name "The Cliffords". Together, they traveled the world, including spending time in Stuttgart, Germany. Edith's two daughters grew up with an aunt in Pawtucket, RI. In the spring of 1919, Harry Houdini visited the Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey show to see one of Clifford's performances where she swallowed a bayonet that was shot down her throat with a gun. By this time, she had been sword swallowing for over 20 years. Houdini claimed that "the sensation of her act was when the point of a bayonet 23 1/2 inches long and fastened to the breech of a cannon was placed in her mouth and the cannon discharged with the recoil driving the bayonet down her throat". After Clifford left Barnum & Bailey Circus, she worked with Gollmer's Circus for a time. It wasn't until she retired from performing at the age of 36 in 1922 after swallowing swords for 23 years that she and her husband Karl brought their daughters home to live with them in Canton, OH. After moving to 3rd Street NE in Canton, OH, she went by her married name Edith Bauer and she and her husband Karl ran a corner grocery store. Even though she did not mention her circus history to most of her neighbors, she got lots of visitors whenever Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus came to Canton in the 1930s. Circus performers and sideshow acts roamed in and out of their home on Third Street NE. Clifford died of a "cancerous right ovary" in Canton, OH on September 3, 1942 at the age of 55, and is buried in West Lawn Cemetery in Canton. According to her obituary, she was active in the Women's Republican Club and other interest groups, but it mentioned nothing about her circus background. Her husband Karl Bauer was born in 1887 and died in Canton in 1962, and they were survived by her two daughters from Pawtucket, RI and a grandson. Clifford's grandson Karl Spinden, from Massillon, OH doesn’t remember his grandma ever talking about her past in show business, and he never saw her swallow a sword. He worked in his grandparents' grocery store as a child, and knew her mostly as a typical nice, sweet grandma, but he keeps one of her swords in a closet at his home. Edith Clifford/Bauer swallowed a variety of swords, bayonets, a serpentine blade, razor blade, saw, and a sword sandwich of up to 24 swords. A collection of her swords are owned by sword swallower Dan Meyer and reside in the archival collection of the Sword Swallowers Association Int'l. Clifford was immortalized in a documentary called Mysteries of Magic: The Impossible Made Possible, filmed in 1997 and put out in 1999 by the Discovery Channel featuring sword swallower Amy Saunders who played the part of Clifford swallowing a razor blade. Seeking photos and more information. Edith Clifford Edith Clifford Edith Clifford face Edith Clifford with saw Edith Clifford with saw Edith Clifford with teddy bear Edith Clifford face (1910) Amy Saunders as Clifford swallowing razor blade (:43 mpg) Grandson Karl Spinden with sword Edith Clifford/Bauer's swords |
| Deodata | Performed 1900 | (Italy) | Deodota, an Italian magician, was also a sword-swallower of more than average ability who performed around the turn of the century. He finally succumbed to the lure of commercialism, and ended up in the jewelry business in the "downtown district" of New York City. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Maurice Eugene "Sword and Rifle Stylist" |
Performed early 1900s? |
(USA) |
Maurice Eugene was known as the "Sword and Rifle Stylist". He was known for balancing swords and rifles and swallowing swords. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show |
Started 1898 Toured Europe 1903-06 |
(Europe) | Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show first toured the US starting in 1883. In 1899, James A. Bailey of Barnum and Bailey Circus fame added his influence to the Wild West Show by hiring midgets, a giant, a snake charmer, a magician, and a sword swallower in the show for an additional admission charge. Professor Charles E. Griffin worked as the sword swallower and manager of the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show sideshow when it toured Europe from 1903 to 1906, where he performed as the "Yankee Yogi and Conjuror", with his wife and son working with him. In 1904 the sword swallower with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in Europe was "The Mighty Ajax". At some point in the European tour, the Wild West Show employed Russian sword swallower Julian Putzkewitsch. After returning to the US in 1907, Griffin authored the book "Four Years in Europe With Buffalo Bill" which was published in 1908. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with BBWWS. |
| Julian Putzkewitsch | Performed 1905-06? |
(Russia) (Europe) |
Russian sword swallower Julian Putzkewitsch toured continental Europe with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Seeking photos and more information |
| "The Amazing Hernando" | Performed early 1900s? |
Entertainment Troupe and Traveling Show Lynchburg, TN (USA) |
According to a Jack Daniel's poster, the "Entertainment Troupe and Traveling Show" was scheduled to perform "starting Monday, June 16, for 6 days and nights in the square of Lynchburg, TN. (Courthouse chairs, 37 cents)" According to the poster, "The Amazing Hernando will shoot a gun while it is DOWN HIS THROAT! Hernando will load a gun with powder and ball, swallow the barrel two feet down his mouth, and then DISCHARGE THE GUN, breaking with a single bullet a small drinking glass placed upon the head of HIS OWN CHILD!" Seeking year and more information. |
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Veno The Electric Sword Swallower Nelson C. Barned |
Performed 1904 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus (USA) |
Nelson C. Barned reportedly performed as "Veno" the Electric Sword Swallower with the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1904. Seeking photos and more information.. |
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Professor A.J. Pierce Albert J. Pierce |
Performed 1905 Died May 30, 1909? |
Bangor, Maine New York, NY (USA) |
Professor A.J. Pierce was the star sword swallower of a show run for several days out of a vacant storefront on Harlow Street in Bangor Maine in 1905. "He runs swords and small saws and scissors and bayonets down his throat until it seems that it must slash his vitals; but he gets through all right and smiles at the frightened spectators. He chews and swallows glass, eats hot pitch and rosin and sealing wax, swallows tacks and does other stunts that cause the observer to wonder what his insides are composed of. ... He finished his stunt by swallowing about 16 inches of a snake," wrote a reporter for the Bangor Daily News on Nov. 11, 1905. Pierce performed with two other colleagues who performed similar feats of daring. LaCrosse, the Human Stone Crusher, let people break stones on his stomach with a sledgehammer, while Madame LaMonte, the Hindoo rope juggler, freed herself after being bound in 50 feet of hemp. The show took place in East Market Square (near where City Hall is today) in what the reporter referred to facetiously as "the tenderloin," a reference to urban neighborhoods known for vice and graft. The show was operated by Professor H.H. Perkins, a scholar of bizarre amusements like his partner Professor Pierce. An article in the NY Times dated May 30, 1909 states, "Albert J. Pierce of No. 2076 Lexington Avenue, a sword swallower, is in Harlem Hospital in serious condition. While doing his usual stunt in a Fourteenth-street show last night, the sword got too deep and cut the lining of his stomach. Dr. Cassini of the hospital says he is suffering from a gastric hemmorhage." Seeking photos and more information. |
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The Mighty Ajax "Arabian Sword Swallower" J.M. Ajax Joseph Milana |
Born 1886 Performed 1904-1958 Died 1958 |
Buffalo Bill's Circus Hubert's Museum Dreamland Circus Sideshow Coney Island, NY (USA) |
The "Mighty Ajax" was born as Joseph Milana in 1886 in Washington, started his entertainment career as a pigeon trainer in dime museums, and ended his career in show business as a Punch and Judy man. He claimed to have taught himself sword swallowing, and toured Europe with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in 1904 at the age of 18. The earliest known photo of the Mighty Ajax, The Arabian Sword Swallower was taken around 1905, after having just returned from touring Europe with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. His first wife Marie Milana also performed fire-eating and "double knife cutting". Ajax had a son named Richard Milana who was born around 1914 when Ajax was around 28 years old. Ajax performed in Vaudeville with Al Jolson and Eddy Cantor, and with the Dave Rosen Show and the Dreamland Circus Sideshow at Coney Island NY in 1917 and was famous for his long run season after season at Coney Island's Dreamland Circus Sideshow. Ajax's Coney Island banner read, "Robert Ripley says, 'The only man in the world who can swallow a red hot sword!' " In 1928, Ajax performed for Hubert's Museum in NY, and had an x-ray taken with a sword down his throat. The Feb-March 1939 issue of "Your Body" magazine featured an x-ray of Ajax with sword down his throat. In the 1940s he swallowed up to 5 swords at one time, and in 1948, he taught Slim Price how to swallow swords in a doorway between shows. Ajax also performed for Robert Ripley's Believe It or Not in the mid-50s. According to a 1955 Ripley's article, "Mrs. Ajax also swallows hardware, but hers has jagged metal edges". Ajax willed his swords to Jimmy Lucky Ball II before he died in 1958 at the age of 72 after performing for around 54 years. Some info courtesy Ajax' son Richard E. Milana through showhistory.com.
Seeking photos and more information. Ajax and wife Marie (early) Ajax (early) Ajax at Hubert's (1928) Ajax X-ray (1928) Ajax x-ray (1939) Ajax swallowing 5 (1940s) Ajax at Ripley's (1955) Ajax (1958?) (.mp4 video) |
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David Berlino (David Bäck) |
Born 1886 Performed 1905-20 Died 1972 |
(Sweden) | David Bäck was born in Brevik, Skaraborg, Sweden in 1886, and performed throughout southern Sweden under the names "David Beck" and "David Berlino" as sword swallower, fire-eater and juggler with a circus he half-owned between about 1905 to about 1920. He died in Stockholm in 1972 at the age of 86. Sök efter fotos och upplysningen. |
| 1st Esophageal Electrocardiogram | 1906 | (Wales) |
Cremer records the first oesophageal electrocardiogram performed in Wales which he achieved in 1906 after enlisting the help of an unnamed professional sword swallower. Seeking more information.. |
| Ringling Brothers Circus | 1907 | (USA) | Ringling Brothers buy Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1907, but tour separately. |
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Oesophagoscopy in a Sword Swallower |
1908 |
Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
According to an article in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences published in Philadelphia, PA in November 1908: Hald reports his observations in oesophagoscopy upon a sword swallower. The oesophagus had been very largely distended in consequence of the professional feats, and the cricoidean zone of the pharynx was patent and much larger than normal. There was an excoriation upon the posterior wall of the cricoid cartilage. Curiously, the patient could not support the examination any better than ordinary subjects, his oesophagus seeming to have become habituated to flat foreign bodies, but not to cylindrical ones. The mucous membrane was of a deep violaceous red, the result of chronic inflammatory condition, likewise the result of his sword swallowing. The tube could be introduced 45 cm. without reaching the cardia. Seeking more information.. |
| Otto Stiefel | Performed 1908 | New York (USA) | Otto Stiefel was featured as a sword swallower and blade walker in the Feb 29, 1908 New York Police Gazette. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
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Milo Milse "World's Greatest Sword Swallower" "World's Greatest Enegma and Fire King" |
Born March 6, 1881 Performed c 1910(?) |
Dreamland Coney Island New York, NY (USA) |
Milo Milse (also known as either Milo or Milse) and according to one pitchcard, was born in Russia on March 6, 1881, and started swallowing swords at the age of nine (around 1890?). He was billed as the "World's Greatest Sword Swallower" for swallowing up to 9 swords at once when he performed at the Dreamland Circus Side Show, Coney Island, New York, possibly around 1910(?). From the back of this pitch card, apparently his address at the time was 1043 Washburne Ave, Canal, NY. Another pitchcard bills him as "The World's Greatest Enegma and Fire King". This pitchcard states that he had "traveled around the world 3 times" and had "mystified over 50,000,000,000 people". It also states that he swallowed swords from 16-24 inches, and up to 24 swords at once. Seeking photos and more information. Milse signature and address Milse pitchcard front Milse pitchcard props Milse pitchcard back |
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William Meltons "Schwertkünstler" |
Performed 1910 | (Germany) |
William Meltons performed in Germany as a "Schwertkünstler" ("Sword Artist") around 1910. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Allen J. Price |
Born c. 1868 Died July 16, 1913 |
Bismarck, ND (USA |
According to his obituary in the Atlanta Constitution dated July 17, 1913: Sword Swallower Dead - Bismarck, ND, July 17, 1913 - Allen J. Price, 45 years old, sword swallower and snake charmer, died here yesterday from drug poisoning. It was learned some time ago that he sold his body to be delivered after death to a university at Baltimore. His widow lives in New York city. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Max Schlepsig |
Performed 1913 |
(Germany) (Albania) |
In 1913, at the time when Albania was looking for a king and hoped that prince Halim Eddine (Halim Etti), nephew of the sultan of Constantinople, would agree to ascend the throne, a 42 year old German, Otto Witte, circus clown and magician by profession who happened to resemble the prince, arranged to have a telegram sent from Constantinople to the head of the Albanian army announcing the arrival of the prince by boat. Witte and his accomplice, Max Schlepsig, a sword swallower promoted to "aide-de-camp" in the interest of the cause, disembarked at Durazzo (Durrës) dressed up in theatre uniforms, and inspected the Albanian guard who presented arms to them. A few days later, after establishing a harem of 25 women, the versatile circus performer and usurper Witte succeeded to be crowned King Otto the First of Albania on August 13th, 1913. The hoax lasted five days. The truth came out when Halim Eddine sent a telegram from Constantinople in which he said he was astonished to be crowned king of Albania without even being aware of it. With the assistance of the young women of the harem, Otto Witte and Max Schlepsig managed to flee from the palace just in time to escape on a fishing boat to Bari. Witte died in Hamburg, Germany exactly 45 years later on August 13th, 1958. Seeking photos and more information.. |
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Borovik B. Ivanoff B. Ivanhoff "World Champion Sword Dancer" |
Performed 191?s-30s |
Russian Royal Circus [Russia] Russian Tea Room New York, NY [USA] |
Seeking information on Borovik, who performed as a sword swallower with the Russian Royal Circus and apparently left Russia at the fall of the Czar in 1917. It is not known for sure if he moved to or performed in the US. However, there was also a Russian Sword Swallower named B. Ivanoff or B. Ivanhoff, who was known as a "World Champion Sword Dancer" with a troop of Russian Cossacks known for their demonstration of horsemenship and dancing, who performed at the Russian Tea Room in NY in the 1920s. Could this have been the same person? Or was this the "Flaming Dagger Dancer" Dimitry Matvienko who performed at the Casino Russe, 157 W. 56th St., located in the Carnegie Hall Building in New York City. Seeking photos and more information. Russian Cossack B. Ivanhoff (1926) Russian Cossack B. Ivanoff Flaming Dagger Dancer Dimitry Matvienko |
| Alexander Joseph Dourof |
Born 1881 Performed 1917?-40s? Died Jan 12, 1948 |
Russian Royal Circus (Russia) (Wales) London (UK) |
Alexander Joseph Dourof was born in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1881 into the well-known Dourof circus family. The Dourofs were initially animal trainers, and Alexander Dourof was allegedly one of the first trainers to train a bear without breaking its back. "The Dourof Family" performed as part of a non-staterun circus in Russia, and in the Russian Royal Circus until the Russian Revolution in 1917 when they escaped as refugees to the UK, settling for a short period in Wales. Their first performance in the UK was with a circus in Barmouth, Wales, and after a short time (the circus came to an end in Wales around 1925), the family later moved to England. Alexander was married to Sophia Elsa Dourof, who was born in Russia in 1888 and died in the UK in 1967. They had ten children who were born in various countries, with the eldest five becoming UK nationalized citizens, including a daughter named Sarah, and a son named Harry Phillip Dourof who was born in the UK and died in 1986. When they first landed in the UK, both Alexander and Sophia entertained British troops, as she was a tight rope walker and the eldest two children were performing acrobats in the ring. After immigrating to the UK, Dourof was required to join the military and was recruited into the Light Cavalry, where as an animal trainer, he handled horses with great skill, and as a sword swallower, he was a master with the saber. The Dourof family traveled together as a family circus and eventually settled down in Peckham England, where they were well-known and well-liked. There was a book written in Russian about Alexander and the Dourof family, but it is out of print and unavailable in English; There is also a plaque commemorating Dourof the sword swallower's assistance in the development of the stomach pump at the renowned Guys Hospital near London Bridge. The original 1943 film "The Man in Grey" (starring James Mason), featured Alexander Dourof in the background swallowing a sword during a carnival scene, although the original film was ruined, and the later version released on video does not include Dourof's scene. Dourof died in England at the age of 68 in 1948, and is buried in Camberwell Old Cemetery in Honor Oak Park in southeast London. On his headstone, Dourof is hailed as being "A Great Showman and the Last of the Sword Swallowers". Seeking photos, dates, and more information Alexander Dourof - headstone Alexander Dourof - face Sophia Dourof - headstone Sophia Dourof - face |
| Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus | 1918 | (USA) | Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus (RBB&B) become one combined show in 1918. |
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Maude D'Lean Maud D'Auldin Maud Churchill |
Born c. 1878 Performed 1894-1920 Died 1920 |
Huber's Museum Hagenbeck Wallace Circus Brook's Museum (USA) |
Maud Churchill or Maude D'Lean or Maud D'Auldin was first known for sword swallowing in 1894 with Delmo Fritz. According to an article in the NY Times dated Sept. 2, 1894 at, "Huber's 14th St. Museum - First apprearance here of LEONZO BROTHERS and their famous company of players in the grand local drama, The Dog Spy. A great production, curio halls, Hindoo Giants 8 feet tall, PRINCE TINYMITE, 19 years old and 21 inches high, MICHAEL Strong Man, Prof. HORN trained birds, DELMO FRITZ and MAUD CHURCHILL, sword swallowers, EMMA BROWN, spotted girl, ROSE CALLAHAN, bearded lady." At some point between 1894 and 1912, Maud was married to sword swallower Delno Fritz. In 1912, they performed an act known as "Sword and Gun Manipulation" together with the Hagenbeck Wallace Sideshow. An article in the Los Angeles Times dated Feb 1, 1916 states, "Mrs. Francis Fritz (38 years of age) who makes her living by shoving swords down her throat at Brook's Museum, No. 116 South Main street, early last night swallowed one sword too many and landed in the Receiving Hospital. The sword swallower declared last night that for twenty years she had been entertaining people by swallowing swords and |
