Becoming Barnum: The Journey to Fame and Fortune

Jun 07 2023 2

Becoming Barnum: The Journey to Fame and Fortune Podcast artwork

"Becoming Barnum: The Journey to Fame and Fortune" is a podcast presented by The Barnum Museum in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The podcast is based on the museum's award-winning blog series and explores the life of P.T. Barnum through a collection of 750-page copybook letters written by Barnum during his travels in Europe in the 1840s. The letters offer insights into Barnum as a husband, father, and businessman, as well as his mentorship of child actor-entertainer General Tom Thumb. The podcast explores the hardscrabble world of show business in the 19th century and offers a glimpse into the life and mind of the man behind the legend. Support for this project is provided by the City of Bridgeport, People’s United, and the Connecticut Humanities and National Endowment for the Humanities. Join us on this journey through history and discover the real person behind the legendary "P.T. Barnum." Listen to our episodes and follow along as we uncover the fascinating story of Barnum's rise to fame and fortune.

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An Introduction to Becoming Barnum: Interview with Barnum Museum Curator

Aug 31 2022 41 mins

In this episode of the "Becoming Barnum" podcast, we sit down with Adrienne Saint-Pierre, the Curator of the Barnum Museum's artifact collection and archive. Saint-Pierre explains what a "copybook" is and how the 750-page copybook of letters in the museum's collection offers a unique window into the life and mind of P.T. Barnum. She discusses what listeners can expect to learn abou

A Bit of France in Bridgeport, Connecticut

Aug 31 2022 30 mins

Barnum’s travels in France had influenced his vision for his beloved Bridgeport; this was clearly revealed by what he chose to tell the Atlas readers. Barnum adopted Bridgeport, Connecticut, as his hometown in 1847, and after that, until he died in 1891, he had a great deal to do with its development, even serving as Mayor for a term.

“A Touch of Yankee” Solves a Problem

Aug 31 2022 26 mins

Mr. Barnum was infuriated by the demands of the Hospice Commissioners who expected a far larger percentage of the gross receipts than Barnum felt reasonable.

The Beginnings of Iranistan

Aug 31 2022 17 mins

Barnum’s homesickness coincided with and perhaps fueled his desire to begin building a country home for his family. Barnum writes about a future grand home in Bridgeport, Iranistan, just in the early planning stage.

A Mountain of Worries

Aug 31 2022 19 mins

In this episode, we delve into a new “batch” of the letters P. T. Barnum wrote while in France and sent back to his family and business associates in America. These letters have a different tone from the letters written in preceding weeks.

A New Play for the General

Aug 31 2022 19 mins

P. T. Barnum’s famous protegee Charles Stratton, known to the world as Gen. Tom Thumb, was quite a young child when he was first introduced to European audiences in the mid-1840s. Though he was 5, 6, and 7 over the three-year tour, Barnum billed him as five or six years older to make his diminutive stature seem all the more impressive.

They Stared with All the Eyes They Had

Aug 31 2022 36 mins

Have you ever tried to envision a visit to Barnum’s American Museum? I find it is a feat of the imagination to reconcile exterior pictures of the museum with the sheer quantity and variety of artifacts, animals, and activities offered within—supposedly over 600,000 items

Story Updates, and a Daughter’s Education

Sep 07 2022 31 mins

Back in Episode, A Mountain of Worries, we had wondered how Charity dealt with a rather harsh letter from her husband, written on September 12th, 1845. Would she reply or remain silent for a while?

Searching for Monsieur Guillaudeu

Sep 14 2022 37 mins

Curiosity got the better of our curator Adrienne after reading another of P. T. Barnum’s letters in which he mentioned the Frenchman who worked for him at the American Museum, plus a letter directly to him responding to concerns about his salary.

My Success Has Been a Miracle

Sep 21 2022 21 mins

One of the many “beauties” of P. T. Barnum’s copybook letters from 1845-1846 is that they provide insights into Barnum’s attitudes toward money just at the point in his life when he had become incredibly rich.