In 1965 the Great Circus Parade returned to Milwaukee for the third time, but it was the first time the antique wagons, vehicles, and animals were transported from Baraboo to Milwaukee on a circus train.
In honor of the most prominent circus in the state founded by the Ringling Brothers, the circus train would replicate how circus wagons were loaded and unloaded from big flatcars.
The Circus Parade Limited, with a half-mile line of railroad flatcars and old passengers coaches, left Baraboo the morning of June 30, traveling through the towns and cities of Merrimac, Lodi, Waunakee, Madison, Cottage Grove, Deerfield, London, Lake Mills, Jefferson Junction, Helenville, Sullivan, Dousman, Wales, Waukesha and West Allis, before arriving in downtown Milwaukee.
The lakefront served as the circus showgrounds, allowing visitors to view the historic wagons in the staging area and attend a small circus throughout the holiday weekend. Clowns, stilt walkers and visiting bands outfitted in old-time circus band uniforms gave outdoor concerts, and the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus gave daily performances in the Arena.
The theme of the July 5, 1965, parade was “A Day in Old Milwaukee,” and it featured teams of horses pulling over 40 circus wagons, antique cars, clowns, marching bands and elephants from the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey circus.
Schlitz Brewing sponsored the first Great Circus Parade in 1963, which was the first all-horse-drawn circus parade in the U.S. since 1939. The Great Circus Parade was staged 30 times in Milwaukee, with the last parade held in 2009.
To learn more about the history of circus entertainment, visit the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Circus World Museum in Baraboo (circusworld.wisconsinhistoryorg).
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Circus train brought wagons, animals, and sideshow acts to Milwaukee
Reporting by Elaine Rewolinski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Elaine Rewolinski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
