Old Bet

Old Bet (died July 24, 1816) was the first circus elephant and the second elephant brought to the United States.^[1] There are reports of an elephant brought to the United States in 1796, but it is not known for certain that this was the elephant that was later named Old Bet.^[2]^[3]

^ Hershenson, Roberta (December 8, 2002). "Under the Big Top". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-07-21. Old Bet, called the second elephant in America by the Somers Historical Society, was also one of the most important elephants in America. The Elephant Hotel in Somers was built in 1825 to honor her, and her owner, Hachaliah Bailey of Somers, and is now in its third century of circus fame. Old Bet was part of the new tradition of menageries -- elephants, tigers, giraffes, rhinos and other exotic animals imported from abroad -- that traveled the countryside with circuses beginning about 1804. Now an exhibition and a theatrical production recall those early circus days.
^ "Setting The Record Straight On Old Bet". American Heritage. Archived from the original on March 15, 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-21. It is not an established fact that Old Bet was the first elephant to arrive in America, and quite possibly she was second. An April, 1796, publication, Greenleaf's New York, mentions an elephant journeying to our shores aboard the ship America. A few days later an elephant was exhibited around Beaver Street and Broadway, according to an advertisement in The Argus, April 23, 1796. This area was the location of the Bull's Head Tavern, a place frequented by ships' captains, drovers, and a variety of businessmen. Hachaliah Bailey of Somers, New York, regularly stayed at the Bull's Head when he took his cattle to the abattoir, which was located nearby. The newspaper reports that the first elephant was sold to a 'Mister Owen.' Unfortunately, they gave no other information about the man, nor did they tell what he did with the elephant he bought, but Hachaliah Bailey's business partner and brother-in-law was named Owen.
^ Crowninshield, Bowdoin Bradlee (1901). An Account of the Private Armed Ship "America" of Salem. Vol. XXXVII. The Essex Institute Historical Collection. p. 1. Retrieved March 3, 2013 – via um.bookprep.com.^{[permanent dead link]}

[top-1] Hershenson, Roberta (December 8, 2002). "Under the Big Top". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-07-21. Old Bet, called the second elephant in America by the Somers Historical Society, was also one of the most important elephants in America. The Elephant Hotel in Somers was built in 1825 to honor her, and her owner, Hachaliah Bailey of Somers, and is now in its third century of circus fame. Old Bet was part of the new tradition of menageries -- elephants, tigers, giraffes, rhinos and other exotic animals imported from abroad -- that traveled the countryside with circuses beginning about 1804. Now an exhibition and a theatrical production recall those early circus days.

[heritage-2] "Setting The Record Straight On Old Bet". American Heritage. Archived from the original on March 15, 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-21. It is not an established fact that Old Bet was the first elephant to arrive in America, and quite possibly she was second. An April, 1796, publication, Greenleaf's New York, mentions an elephant journeying to our shores aboard the ship America. A few days later an elephant was exhibited around Beaver Street and Broadway, according to an advertisement in The Argus, April 23, 1796. This area was the location of the Bull's Head Tavern, a place frequented by ships' captains, drovers, and a variety of businessmen. Hachaliah Bailey of Somers, New York, regularly stayed at the Bull's Head when he took his cattle to the abattoir, which was located nearby. The newspaper reports that the first elephant was sold to a 'Mister Owen.' Unfortunately, they gave no other information about the man, nor did they tell what he did with the elephant he bought, but Hachaliah Bailey's business partner and brother-in-law was named Owen.

[america-3] Crowninshield, Bowdoin Bradlee (1901). An Account of the Private Armed Ship "America" of Salem. Vol. XXXVII. The Essex Institute Historical Collection. p. 1. Retrieved March 3, 2013 – via um.bookprep.com.^{[permanent dead link]}

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