Terrifying Vintage Circus Photos That Will Give You Nightmares
Real-life mystery and horror that you won't be able to look away from.
The circus itself has been a beloved family tradition that dates back decades but what we think of today when we picture a circus in our head versus what the circus of the past was like are two entirely different universes.
In fact a few decades ago a favored attraction at the circuses that traveled the country were "sideshows" or "freakshows" where differently abled people were treated like attractions for amusement rather than people. It's true that plenty of these unique individuals participated with enthusiasm and made a decent living but horrifyingly many others were treated more like indentured servants living a life that no one would dream of, unless it were the things your nightmares are made of.
History has left us bizarre photos that serve as a chilling reminder of a dark past and are filled with stories that need to be told.
Warning: Some of these photos may be considered NSFW.
1. The Human Pincushion
Voluntarily stabbing yourself through with enormous objects would still attract crowds to this day and age.
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2. A Performer
His hand and feet deformities attracted crowds
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3. Frank Lentini
"The Three-Legged Man" just barely touches on his unique body. Along with his 3 legs, Frank had four feet, sixteen toes, and two functioning sets of genitals.
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4. Four-Legged Woman
It's possible that this was an optical illusion to draw in tickets but it's hard to say for sure.
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5. Martin Joe Laurello
Martin was known as "The Human Owl" for his bone chilling ability to rotate his entire head nearly a full 180 degrees!
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6. Sideshow Boxers of "Different" Proportions
We wonder if behind the scenes they were close friends.
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7. The Human Caterpillar
He was born limbless and to amuse the crowds he would roll and light cigarettes with his mouth.
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8. Pip and Flip
Their promotional poster is interesting.
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9. Family Portrait
This leg-less acrobat poses with his family.
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10. Two Performers
One with giant feet and another with no arms. Did they travel together?
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11. Koo Koo, The Bird Girl
A fascinating glimpse at history.
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12. Unzie the Albin
Albinos today are considered some of the most uniquely beautiful people on the planet but in the past they traveled with the circus as part of the sideshow.
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13. The man with a tail.
It appears he was born with a vestigial tail and went on to live a life deprived of nourishment, presumably mistreated by the circus he traveled with.
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14. Mike, The Headless Chicken
This impressive fowl lived for 18 months after having his head cut off.
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15. The Pierced Man
This is the kind of photograph that burns in your mind and creeps up into your nightmares late at night.
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16. Lucia Zarate
She was undeniably the smallest person who ever lived and weighed only 4lbs at 18 years old.
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17. Annie Jones
The American Bearded Woman. Her confidence and personality shines through her photograph, honestly.
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18. Schlitzie Simon Metz
Schlitzie suffered from a serious disability called microcephaly. Microcephaly is most commmonly a fatal fetal abnormality that causes a shrunken cranium and brain. For Schlitzie, the disability caused him to have the intellect of a small child even into adulthood.
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19. The Real Life Mister Fantastic?
He was known as the Elastic Skin Man.
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20. John Jennings
John was known as the "modern-day Sampson" for his ability to lift heavy weights with his hair. Yeah, you read that correctly: his hair.
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21. Robert "The Pony Boy" Huddleston
This man actually suffered from inverted knee joints and they kept him from being physically capable of standing up straight.
The Human Marvels
22. "The Minnesota Wooly Baby."
Alice Elizabeth Doherty lived from 1887 to 1933 and is the only person known with "hypertrichosis lauginosa" born in the United States and spent most of her life being exhibited BY her parents as a sideshow attraction.
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23. "The Two-Headed Man."
Conjoined twins that were quite the "attraction" back in the day.
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24. Ella Harper
Ella was known as "The Camel Girl."
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25. Grady Stiles
Of course he was named "Lobster Boy" when he was born suffering from etrodactyly, which caused him to develop claw-like extremities.
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26. Atoria Gibbons
Atoria was a "freak" back in her day as "The Tattooed Woman," but today she would be completely and totally normal. Interesting how times change perspectives, isn't it?
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27. Robert Owen Melvin
He was known as the "Man With Two Faces," caused by a condition he suffered from called neurofibromatosis. Reportedly, he was very personable and ambitious, and even went on to graduate from school in his post-circus days.
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28. The Wild Men of Borneo
These developmentally disabled under-grown twins were tragically sold by their mother to the circus.
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We live in such a dark world. There have been extremely disturbing and creepy verified pieces of found footage that shook the world. These aren't for the faint hearted.
