Execution of the elephant Mary. Vasilisa Yaviks is an intelligent search engine. tomorrow is already here! Big Mary

This tragic event occurred almost 100 years ago in the city of Kingsport, Tennessee, USA. In 1916, on September 12, a caravan of trailers and wagons with circus performers, animals and props entered the city; it was the traveling circus “Spark Brothers” (Sparks World Famous Shows). The small town of Kingsport, like many similar places, for the Spark brothers was just another settlement where they were to give another circus performance, then no one could have imagined what tragic event would happen here.

The circus has arrived. Routine preparations for the upcoming shows began, workers laid out the area, raised a colorful tent, and the artists and animals began rehearsals. An Asian elephant named Big Mary was supposed to perform in one of the acts; they also decided to bring her into the arena so that she could refresh her memory of the main actions of the act.
To care for Big Mary, a young boy was taken into her trailer; he was working for the first time and had no experience in handling animals. Colleagues inadvertently advised him to use painful methods in case of disobedience of the animal, he, following their instructions when taking the elephant out of the carriage, at the moment when she hesitated, pierced her ear with a stick with a sharp metal lance. The wound turned out to be so painful that Big Mary howled angrily, the pain instantly enraged her, she grabbed her offender with her trunk, threw him to the ground and trampled him to death.

A fuss began among the circus performers, those who had weapons at hand began to shoot, but the bullets, causing further pain, only further incited rage and anger in the animal. In panic, people rushed around the circus territory; the elephant, apparently accidentally crushed several more people to death in this bustle. No one could catch the enraged animal, Mary left the territory occupied by the circus and headed to the city, only an hour later, when the pain subsided, the rage and panic passed, the Kingsport sheriff managed to lure Mary into a cage next to the city prison...
This story might not have happened if rumors about what had happened had not spread to cities neighboring Kingsport. After the incident, activists were immediately found in them, who began to whip up panic among the population there too. The authorities had to set a condition for the Sparks brothers that the circus would not be given permission to perform in these cities while the elephant responsible for the human deaths was alive. The Sparks brothers had no choice but to decide, under public pressure, to take the elephant's life.

History is silent about who came up with the idea of ​​public execution; apparently, the morals of that time did not allow people to accept the death of an animal in absentia and using more humane methods.
Without trial or investigation, the authorities demanded the elephant's death by public hanging. For many who came, it was just another show, which, according to various sources, gathered from 2000 to 5000 spectators. For the lynching, the most powerful crane available in those places was prepared, and a port chain was used as a rope. When the animal was raised, Mary, still alive, suddenly fell, the chain could not withstand the 5-ton weight, and the elephant broke her hip in the fall. The chain was replaced and the animal was hanged again, this time the chain held - Big Mary died.
She was buried near the place of execution. Circus tours were no longer under threat, the public was happy, and there were no elephants in the Spark Brothers circus acts for a long time...

Mary (Big Mary; English Mary, Big Mary; OK. - September 13, %D1%81%D0%B0%D0%B9%D1%82<=>%5B>https:%E2%95%B1%E2%95%B1en.wikipedia.org%E2%95%B1wiki%E2%95%B1Erwin,_Tennessee<%5D<)+%7D" class="extiw" title="en:Erwin, Tennessee">Erwin (English) Russian, Tennessee, USA) is an Asian elephant who performed in the American Sparks Brothers Circus (English: Sparks World Famous Shows). She gained fame after she was hanged for murdering a man.

Murder

On September 12, 1916, the Sparks Brothers circus troupe came to Kingsport, Tennessee to perform. They brought with them a 30-year-old elephant, Mary, who was also scheduled to perform. Mary was being watched by a certain Red Eldridge, a newcomer to circus work who did not know how to handle animals. Before one of the performances, Eldridge pierced her ear with a hook to bring Mary on stage. Mary got angry, grabbed him with her trunk, threw him to the ground, and trampled him to death. Panic ensued. They started shooting at the elephant, but the medium-caliber bullets did not kill her. It was difficult to stop the elephant. Local Sheriff Hickman "arrested" Mary and locked her in a cage next to the city jail. Residents of neighboring cities, having learned about the massacre, said that they would not host this circus while the elephant was alive.

Although one death is known with certainty, Believe It or Not in 1938 reported that a female elephant was responsible for the deaths of 3 people, and popular rumor said 8 were killed.

Hanging

Under pressure from the public, the circus owners, the Sparks brothers, made a decision - the next day Mary was hanged from a railway crane in front of a crowd of spectators. About 5,000 people gathered. But the chain by which the elephant was hanged could not bear the weight and broke. Mary fell and broke her hip. She was hanged again and Mary died. Mary was buried near the site of the massacre.

Murder

On September 12, 1916, the Sparks Brothers circus troupe came to Kingsport, Tennessee to perform. They brought with them a 30-year-old elephant, Mary, who was also scheduled to perform. Mary was being watched by a certain Red Eldridge, a newcomer to circus work who did not know how to handle animals. Before one of the performances, Eldridge pierced her ear with a hook to bring Mary on stage. Mary got angry, grabbed him with her trunk, threw him to the ground, and trampled him to death. Panic ensued. They started shooting at the elephant, but the medium-caliber bullets did not kill her. It was difficult to stop the elephant. Local Sheriff Hickman "arrested" Mary and locked her in a cage next to the city jail. Residents of neighboring cities, having learned about the massacre, said that they would not host this circus while the elephant was alive.

Although one death is known with certainty, the 1938 Believe It or Not reported that the elephant was responsible for the deaths of 3 people, and popular rumor said 8 were killed.

Hanging

Under pressure from the public, the circus owners, the Sparks brothers, made a decision - the next day Mary was hanged from a railway crane in front of a crowd of spectators. About 5,000 people gathered. But the chain by which the elephant was hanged could not bear the weight and broke. Mary fell and broke her hip. She was hanged again and Mary died. Mary was buried near the site of the massacre.

Execution of an elephant named "Big Mary", USA, 1916.

This story still shocks with its cruelty, injustice and outrages the morals of America at the beginning of the 20th century.

This tragic event occurred almost 100 years ago in the city of Kingsport, Tennessee, USA. In 1916, on September 12, a caravan of trailers and wagons with circus performers, animals and props entered the city; it was the traveling circus “Spark Brothers” (Sparks World Famous Shows). The small town of Kingsport, like many similar places, for the Spark brothers was just another settlement where they were to give another circus performance, then no one could have imagined what tragic event would happen here.
The circus has arrived. Routine preparations for the upcoming shows began, workers laid out the area, raised a colorful tent, and the artists and animals began rehearsals. A 30-year-old Asian elephant named Big Mary was supposed to perform in one of the acts; they also decided to bring her into the arena so that she could refresh her memory of the main actions of the act. To care for Big Mary, a young boy, Red Eldridge, was taken into her trailer; he was working for the first time and had no experience in handling animals. Colleagues inadvertently advised him to use painful methods in case of disobedience of the animal, he, following their instructions when taking the elephant out of the carriage, at the moment when she hesitated, pierced her ear with a stick with a sharp metal lance. The wound turned out to be so painful that Big Mary howled angrily, the pain instantly enraged her, she grabbed her offender with her trunk, threw him to the ground and trampled him to death.

A fuss began among the circus performers, those who had weapons at hand began to shoot, however, the medium caliber of bullets did not kill her. But the bullets, causing further pain, only further incited rage and anger in the animal. In panic, people rushed around the circus territory; the elephant, apparently accidentally crushed several more people to death in this bustle. No one could catch the enraged animal, Mary left the territory occupied by the circus and headed to the city, only an hour later, when the pain subsided, the rage and panic passed, the Kingsport sheriff managed to lure Mary into a cage next to the city prison...

This story might not have happened if rumors about what had happened had not spread to cities neighboring Kingsport. After the incident, activists were immediately found in them, who began to whip up panic among the population there too. The authorities had to set a condition for the Sparks brothers that the circus would not be given permission to perform in these cities while the elephant responsible for the human deaths was alive. The Sparks brothers had no choice but to decide, under public pressure, to take the elephant's life.

History is silent about who came up with the idea of ​​public execution; apparently, the morals of that time did not allow people to accept the death of an animal in absentia and using more humane methods. Without trial or investigation, the authorities demanded the elephant's death by public hanging. For many who came, it was just another show, which, according to various sources, gathered from 2000 to 5000 spectators. For the lynching, the most powerful crane available in those places was prepared, and a port chain was used as a rope. When the animal was raised, Mary, still alive, suddenly fell, the chain could not withstand the 5-ton weight, and the elephant broke her hip in the fall. The chain was replaced and the animal was hanged again, this time the chain held - Big Mary died. She was buried near the place of execution. Circus tours were no longer under threat, the public was happy, and there were no elephants in the Spark Brothers circus acts for a long time...

Execution of the elephant Topsy.

In 1875, Topsy the elephant was brought to New York. For 28 years she took part in performances and entertained the audience. True, by 1903 her character was gradually changing and not for the better. Perhaps it was the fault of the park staff, perhaps simply a lack of communication, warmth and love, but she accounted for three killed. One of them, by the way, was a trainer who tried to treat Topsy with a lit cigarette.

As a result, the elephant was convicted and sentenced to death. Hanging was initially planned, but animal rights activists considered it inhumane. Then Edison suggested killing her with electricity.
At that time, there was an active discussion between Tesla and Edison about the prospects of using direct and alternating current.
Edison saw in such a spectacular event as the execution of an elephant an opportunity to advertise his beliefs and demonstrate the capabilities of alternating current.

On January 4, 1903, Topsy on Coney Island came into the possession of Edison, who was trying to demonstrate the lethality of alternating current. About 15 thousand people tried to get to the execution, but only 2 thousand agreed to pay for the pleasure of personally observing the process.

Topsy was given a cyanide-laced carrot, put on copper shoes, and passed an alternating current through the attached electrodes. The current voltage was 6600 Volts, Topsy's death occurred within 10 seconds. The execution of an elephant - Edison captured it on film in the film.

This story still shocks with its cruelty, injustice and outrages the morals of America at the beginning of the 20th century.

This tragic event occurred almost 100 years ago in the city of Kingsport, Tennessee, USA. In 1916, on September 12, a caravan of trailers and wagons with circus performers, animals and props entered the city; it was the traveling circus “Spark Brothers” (Sparks World Famous Shows). The small town of Kingsport, like many similar places, for the Spark brothers was just another settlement where they were to give another circus performance, then no one could have imagined what tragic event would happen here.

The circus has arrived. Routine preparations for the upcoming shows began, workers laid out the area, raised a colorful tent, and the artists and animals began rehearsals. An Asian elephant named Big Mary was supposed to perform in one of the acts; they also decided to bring her into the arena so that she could refresh her memory of the main actions of the act. To care for Big Mary, a young boy was taken into her trailer; he was working for the first time and had no experience in handling animals. Colleagues inadvertently advised him to use painful methods in case of disobedience of the animal, he, following their instructions when taking the elephant out of the carriage, at the moment when she hesitated, pierced her ear with a stick with a sharp metal lance. The wound turned out to be so painful that Big Mary howled angrily, the pain instantly enraged her, she grabbed her offender with her trunk, threw him to the ground and trampled him to death.

A fuss began among the circus performers, those who had weapons at hand began to shoot, but the bullets, causing further pain, only further incited rage and anger in the animal. In panic, people rushed around the circus territory; the elephant, apparently accidentally crushed several more people to death in this bustle. No one could catch the enraged animal, Mary left the territory occupied by the circus and headed to the city, only an hour later, when the pain subsided, the rage and panic passed, the Kingsport sheriff managed to lure Mary into a cage next to the city prison...

This story might not have happened if rumors about what had happened had not spread to cities neighboring Kingsport. After the incident, activists were immediately found in them, who began to whip up panic among the population there too. The authorities had to set a condition for the Sparks brothers that the circus would not be given permission to perform in these cities while the elephant responsible for the human deaths was alive. The Sparks brothers had no choice but to decide, under public pressure, to take the elephant's life.

History is silent about who came up with the idea of ​​public execution; apparently, the morals of that time did not allow people to accept the death of an animal in absentia and using more humane methods. Without trial or investigation, the authorities demanded the elephant's death by public hanging. For many who came, it was just another show, which, according to various sources, gathered from 2000 to 5000 spectators. For the lynching, the most powerful crane available in those places was prepared, and a port chain was used as a rope. When the animal was raised, Mary, still alive, suddenly fell, the chain could not withstand the 5-ton weight, and the elephant broke her hip in the fall. The chain was replaced and the animal was hanged again, this time the chain held - Big Mary died. She was buried near the place of execution. Circus tours were no longer under threat, the public was happy, and there were no elephants in the Spark Brothers circus acts for a long time...