James "Grizzly" Adams - Association With Circus People

Association With Circus People

In 1833, John Adams hired on as a wild animal collector with a group of showmen. Several menageries were active in the New England area at this time, probably the largest was the June, Titus Company's National Menagerie aka, Grand National Menagerie. Boston, Massachusetts was the venue for many such menageries while Adams was living there, so he had the opportunity to meet and interact with the proprietors and performers. There were also circuses and menageries on the Pacific Coast when John reached California, one of which was the Joseph A. Rowe Olympic Circus that performed in San Francisco and Sacramento, California at the time he arrived. On two occasions, Adams told Hittell he had contact with an acquaintance from New England. This person most likely was in some way connected to the circus/menagerie business. Adams told Hittell that the man was his brother, "William," although Adams didn't have a brother by that name. According to Earle Williams, the property that Adams ranched near Stockton, California in 1852 was the same land that was later acquired by Henry C. Lee and John R. Marshall, proprietors of the Lee and Marshall Circus. Lee hired a man by the name of David Howard to run the ranch which was about eight-miles southeast of Stockton, on Mariposa road. Grizzly Adams often left his stock and captured animals at "Howard's Ranch" to be cared for by Howard and Lee's circus people. Lee's circus used the ranch to keep their circus stock, wagons and other items in the circus' winter off-season. According to Williams when Grizzly Adams established his Mountaineer Museum in San Francisco, in 1856, the menagerie was a part of Lee's Circus, as a side show. Adams and a couple of his bears appeared with Rowe's Pioneer Circus in November. In 1857, Adams had a partner named Sheppard. In 1859, T. W. Tanner was a partner with Adams (this may have been the man who owned a half-interest in Adams' Pacific Museum, prior to Adams leaving for New York in January, 1860). When Adams arrived in New York City in April 1860, he discovered while talking with P.T. Barnum, that Barnum had bought the one-half interest of Adams' California Menagerie, (possibly from Tanner). On April 30, 1860, Adams and Barnum opened the California Menagerie in a canvas tent on the corner of Broadway and Fourth Street in New York City The show ran for six weeks. Adams health was failing, and he sold the remaining interest in the menagerie to Barnum. Adams then went on a summer tour of Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire as part of Nixon & Company's Circus. He continued to perform with his bears and other trained animals until late October, 1860.