J.E. Henry Circus
Posted By thecircusblog on November 22, 2014
My Grandfather never played very many large towns as he preferred small towns. The reason was, he had a wagon show and the miles between small towns were less than between large towns which made it easier to herd the big animals over the road. It would take a full day to travel 35 miles, sometimes even longer. My father told me that he started helping to herd the animals when he was only 5. Growing up in the circus with all the Henry family was the greatest time of my life. Some of the stories that I was told are simply unbelievable. While herding animals along dirt roads, it would never fail that wagons or other herds would be traveling the opposite direction and then the fun began….trying to separate the circus animals from cattle, or whatever. There were times when they even got shot at. I do remember the story about Jeb who was a wrangler…which was the trail boss of the men that herded animals and worked on the tent. Jeb heard a shot whiz over them. My father said he carried an 8 gage Greener shot gun and was not afraid to use it if necessary. It is said that he rode toward where the shot came from and over a ridge and all anyone could hear was the report of his shotgun. He came back to the herd and continued on as if nothing was the matter. There is a photo of Jeb in the Circus blog. He riding a very large mule and if I am not mistaken his Greener is with him.
As the circus blog goes on, I hope to relate other stories to you.
About the author
Comments
Leave a Reply
Please note: Comment moderation is currently enabled so there will be a delay between when you post your comment and when it shows up. Patience is a virtue; there is no need to re-submit your comment.