Circus Boat Comes to Russellville
- Lawrence Lore
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
The Spaulding and Rogers Circus Company aboard the renowned Floating Palace showboat made its inaugural appearance at Terre Haute on April 23rd, 1853, presenting a day and evening performance after stopping at Mount Carmel, Vincennes, RUSSELLVILLE and Hutsonville. The Floating Palace was in the second year of its 14-year existence built by Gilbert R Doc Spalding in Cincinnati for $42,000.
The Floating Palace was an amphitheater erected on a flat bottom barge with a 42-foot circus ring and plush seating for 2400 people. More than 200 gas jets lit the arena. For $0.50 white patrons could sit in armchairs in Dress Circle. Cushioned family box seats and gallery tickets were $0.25 each. Persons of Color, however, were charged $0.50 for admittance to the gallery.
The Terre Haute Wabash Courier reported “The great Floating Palace made its appearance at our Wharf on Saturday last agreeable to advertisement. Performances took place in the afternoon and evening and for once we were willing to say that a circus exhibition came up to what was advertised and professed to be and do. The accommodations and seats for an audience are the best and most genteel we have ever seen. The performances too were excellent, altogether superior to those land-traveling circuses usually exhibiting in this place. Its towboat, the Circus Fleet hosted a menagerie. Fortunately, the Showboat survived the tornado-like storm that plundered Terre Haute about 7:30 on Saturday April 23rd, 1853.
The picture is an accurate representation of what was called the Floating Palace. It was built for the purpose of equestrian exhibitions. It was rather a novel idea to construct such a curious ship --a regular movable theater; but it is said to have succeeded far beyond the expectations of its owners. “It is not a sham -built affair,” but it is really very finely fitted and perfect in every respect. The interior is a most commodious amphitheater. The ‘dress circle’ as it is termed, consists of eleven hundred cane bottom armchairs, each numbered to correspond with the ticket issued. The family circle comprises cushion settees for some five hundred persons, while the remainder of the accommodations is comprised of nine hundred gallery seats.
The Gleason’s Drawing Room Companion, first printed on February 19th, 1853, and later reprinted in the Circus Scrapbook #13, January 1932, pages 19 through 20, described the circus boat in more detail. “The amphitheater is warmed by means of hot water pipes or steam and altogether it is an exceedingly comfortable and pleasurable exhibition room. The interior is lit by over one hundred brilliant gas jets, forming a great ornament in their construction and supplied by a gas apparatus on board. This furnishes the entire light for vestibule, the halls, offices, saloons, green rooms, dressing rooms, and the stable. A chime of bells is attached to the structure and discourses most elegant music previous to each performance, while Drummond- lights render the neighborhood of the floating palace brilliant during the exhibition. Every deception to delude the visitor into the idea that he is in a spacious theater on shore is used and it is difficult to realize that one is on the water during the performance.”
Don't Forget the Donn Grenda Program on Monday 14 7:00 History Center!!
