The Past

History, that is our knowledge of the past, can inform or help us understand current events.  As bad as things may seem, there usually is a time in the past when things were worse.  Present time thinking has a way of fogging a long-term view, both past and future.  Technology and persons may change, but similarities between events exist.  Many communities like to have some slogan to describe and promote their city or village, many related to a historic event or the start of some event that made the community fairly well known.  Time, however, has a way of diluting this heritage and at some point the city or chamber motto may well lack any connection or relevance to current public recognition or reality outside of the host community.  Milwaukee and Detroit are not the beer and motor cities they were in forty or fifty years ago.  The City of Edmonton, in Canada, eh, last year removed its motto as they believed it no longer relevant.  Their motto was “City of Champions.”  

Man Mound Park, northeast of Baraboo, WI (author photo)

Some time was spent this past Saturday in Baraboo, WI.  Baraboo is an older community with a nice courthouse, as the county seat of Sauk County, and posseses a downtown with some well-kept buildings.  Some parts of the downtown are, however, getting tired looking, having become victim to the suburban shopping movement.   It is odd how we as a nation like to visit these small quaint downtown areas that are link to the past when a central business district was truly a central business district, but yet often visit the sprawl mall, making those historic downtowns less desirable.  Today, in Baraboo second hand stores and food and beverage places seem more prevalent nestled among the financial institutions.  Baraboo calls itself, the “Gem City” not because of diamonds, emeralds or sapphires, but due to attractions near and in the community.  Baraboo is just north of Devil’s Lake State Park, one of most visited parks in the state of Wisconsin.  It is south of the International Crane Foundation, and the large Man Mound Indian mound located on Man Mound Road, now almost too close to the city edge. Other than Devil’s Lake, iBaraboo is most defined by the Circus World Museum.  The museum is located on the former winter grounds of the Ringling Brothers Circus, along the banks of the Baraboo River, only  few blocks south of the courthouse. 

Sauk County Courthouse, Baraboo WI (author photo)

The problem is that circuses’ seem to be a thing of the past.  Attendance at the museum has been spotty in recent years.  Years ago, a circus would travel to destinations by wagon, then it was by train, and now by semi.  They would stake their tents on an open field, and parade through the town with their gleaming circus wagons to attract interest.  Today few do the tents, desiring the indoor arenas.   Perhps acknowlding the past, or looking for unspent stamps by collectors, the postal service this year has stamps out recognizing the Ringling Circus.  Years ago my wife and I took our children to Circus World Museum, the one and only time I was on to the grounds.  The former circus parade, consisting primarily of museum circus wagons used to be held annually in Milwaukee, has seen costs rise to the point it is no longer viable to stage.  It shifted to Baraboo, but it too is falling victim to costs.  Yet, as famous as the Ringling Brothers circus was, it may be coming a past memory, and may not be in the collective conscience of millennials, the i-generation and other young souls. 

Ringling Brothers (Google Images)

Five of seven Ringling brothers began performing acts in town halls across the state in 1882.  In 1884 they entered the big leagues when they founded the Ringling Brothers Circus.  Ringling Brothers bought out the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1907, hence giving the name most recognized today, and the moniker “The Greatest Show on Earth”.  The Gollmar Brothers Circus was also founded in Baraboo by cousins of the Ringling’s in 1891.  Beyond the Circus World Museum, Baraboo contains a few other gems related to its past circus heritage which had come to define the city, and the city now uses to define itself.  There is the Al Ringling home, built of dark red stone, which is now in the process of being restored and to become a Bed and Breakfast after years of use as the local Elk’s Club.  There is the Al Ringling Theater which was recently restored, and is a masterpiece for a small town.  For a few years I had the pleasure of working in the Baraboo Courthouse and the desk (really table) I occupied looked out over the theater.   There is a wood sided Ringling home along Hwy 33 a couple blocks from downtown, already a B&B.  But, there may be a growing disconnect.  On our visit to Baraboo one of the plans was to possibly tour the Al Ringling home. When mentioned to one of our children that we may be doing this, he confessed that he had never heard of Al Ringling, or the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.  The Greatest Show in Earth, is apparently no longer well known.  Other avenues and events have been opened and available to children today compared with children 100 years ago.  Our son was very young, about two, on our trip to the Circus World Museum.  With creepy clowns continuing to terrorize there will likely be even less interest in a circus since they did so much to popularize clowns.

Downtown Baraboo (Google Images)

With this disconnect, how long can Baraboo and its nod to the circus heritage continue?  It is already 98 when the Ringlings ceased using Baraboo as their winter quarters.   Yet, signs of the circus are well prevalent in the community.  Bike racks are in the shape of a wagon wheel, the water tower is painted like a big top tents of old, and even the new Highway 12 bypass contains circus images, as artwork, on its over/under passes.  The old winter grounds, and hometown of the Ringling’s still defines Baraboo to a large degree.  As years go by, and the circus history of the community moves out of memory, the Al Ringling home and theater will be less known for its circus history than as landmarks in a town from a once wealthy citizen.  One may not know if he was a brewer, financier, or industrialist of a once past industry during the gilded age.  What remains, and hopefully will continue to remain, is the link these buildings provide to a national past that is long fading into the sunset of our collective memory.  

Interior of Al Ringling Theater (Google Images)