Showmen's Rest
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
Showmen's Rest in Forest Park, Illinois is a 750 plot section of Woodlawn Cemetery where a mass grave of 56 (or perhaps 61) employees of the Hagenbeck-Wallace circus were interred. They were killed in the Hammond circus train wreck on June 22, 1918 at Ivanhoe, Indiana (about 5 1/2 miles east of Hammond, Indiana), when an empty Michigan Central Railroad troop train from Detroit, Michigan to Chicago, Illinois piloted by an engineer who had fallen asleep, Alonzo Sargent, plowed into their circus train. Sargent, who was an experienced man at the throttle, but had had little or no sleep in the preceding twenty-four hours. The effects of a heavy meal, some kidney pills, and the gentle rolling of his locomotive apparently combined to make him drowsy.
The circus train had stopped due to an emergency situation, a blazing hot box on the south side of the train which was noticed by the flagman from the rear as the train approached Ivanhoe. This proved to be on flatcar No. 72, some 10 or 11 cars from the rear end. Although the brakeman took the required precautions to protect his train, Sargent failed to respond to signals and torpedos warning of the stopped train, and at an estimated 35 miles-per-hour, plowed into the caboose and four wooden sleeping cars at the rear of the 26-car circus train which was carrying with 400 performers and roustabouts.
Most of the 86 who were killed in the train wreck perished in the first 35 seconds after the collision. Then, the wreckage caught on fire, in one of the worst circus train wrecks in history. Among the dead were Arthur Dierckx and Max Nietzborn of the "Great Dierckx Brothers" strong man act and Jennie Ward Todd of "The Flying Wards". There were 127 injuries.
The Showmen's League of America, formed in 1913 with Buffalo Bill Cody as its first president, had recently selected and purchased the burial land in Woodlawn Cemetery at the intersection of Cermak Road and Des Plaines Avenue in Forest Park, Illinois for its members. Services were held five days after the train wreck. The identity of many victims of the wreck was unknown. Most of the markers note "unidentified male" (or female). One is marked "Smiley," another "Baldy," and "4 Horse Driver."
In modern times, the Showmen's Rest section of Woodlawn Cemetery continues to fill up with deceased showmen said to be now performing at that biggest of Big Tops. Each year, a Memorial Day service is held at Woodlawn Cemetery.
Other Showmen's Rests are located at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Hugo, Oklahoma. Hugo is a winter circus home which calls itself Circus City, USA. At Miami, Florida, the largest Showmen's Rest is at Southern Memorial Park. There, large elephant and lion statues flank hundreds of markers commemorating circus greats and not-so-greats.
Trivia
- Following wreck of June 22, 1918, the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus had to only cancel two performances: the one in Hammond, Indiana and its next stop Monroe, Wisconsin. This was due in part by the assistance by many of its so called competitors, including Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus lending needed equipment and performers so that the show could go on. The city of Hammond also joined in to help the surviving circus performers and workers. Many of the city's residents and shop keepers gave food and clothing as well.
- Statues of five elephants surround the Showmen's Rest section of Woodlawn Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois. The elephants each have a foot raised with a ball underneath, and the trunks lowered. (Raised trunks are a symbol of joy and excitement; lowered trunks symbolize mourning). The base of the large central elephant is inscribed with "Showmen's League of America". On the others are the words "Showmen's Rest".
External link
- Showmen's Rest webpage, Showmen's League of America (http://www.showmensleague.org/showmens_rest/showmens_rest.html)
See also:
