New exhibit in St. Thomas explores legacy of global icon — Jumbo the elephant

Isha Bhargava · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 12, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: July 12

He was erstwhile known arsenic the astir celebrated elephant successful the satellite and much than a period aft his death, Jumbo the elephant's bequest inactive lives on. 

It's the taxable of the caller Jumbomania exhibit astatine the Elgin County Heritage Centre successful St. Thomas, Ont., which explores Jumbo's life, however helium became a global icon that's inactive well-known today, and the mysterious circumstances starring to his decease 140 years ago.  

"Even aft his death, helium continued to beryllium a celebrity, truthful the grounds is not conscionable about Jumbo's beingness but besides to observe his legacy," Madeleine Howard, the museum's curator, told CBC Radio's Afternoon Drive. 

"Even if radical don't needfully cognize Jumbo the large African elephant, they inactive cognize his name, truthful that's what our grounds is highlighting — he's everyplace and he's not going anyplace anytime soon."

Jumbo was known for his ample stature, which gained tons of attraction and made him the prima of "The Greatest Show connected Earth" circus hosted by showman and Connecticut politician P.T. Barnum. The amusement is said to person brought successful the largest crowds successful the circus' history. 

Jumbo's beginnings and emergence to fame

The elephant's beingness came to an extremity erstwhile helium was fatally struck by a bid during a Canadian halt successful St. Thomas successful 1885, but his travel began successful Africa wherever helium lived successful his aboriginal years earlier helium was captured and sold to the British London Zoo successful the 1860s. 

"He was unluckily a unfortunate of the exotic carnal commercialized that was happening during that clip play and transported passim Europe. He wasn't doing excessively good and the zookeepers benignant of neglected him," said impermanent accumulation curator Dariusz Korbiel. 

Jumbo was the archetypal known elephant to beryllium brought to Europe live and gave rides to thousands of children. Many radical would travel to spot him portion visiting the zoo but Jumbo's beingness changed successful 1882 erstwhile helium was purchased by Barnum, Korbiel said.

That merchantability was the commencement of what became Jumbomania. The elephant rapidly roseate to fame as his sanction and photograph began appearing connected advertisements, newspapers, postcards, cigar boxes, shoelaces and different memorabilia, but spectators had a peculiar enslaved with him, said Howard. 

"He was besides truthful gentle and cautious with each the radical astir him, the children and anybody who was riding connected his back, and I deliberation radical could spot however unsocial and peculiar helium was," she said. 

The exhibit features unique memorabilia, on with archetypal photographs and quality articles from the time. It also dives into the myriad of conspiracies surrounding what led to Jumbo's decease and whether helium was successful information the largest elephant successful the world. 

After his death, Jumbo's fell was stuffed and his skeleton was mounted truthful helium could question with Barnum arsenic 2 jumbos, according to Howard. She said Barnum had the elephant's fell stretched and elongated to marque him look taller, and was ne'er displayed with the skeleton. 

Jumbo remains embedded into the present-day St. Thomas assemblage which has a life-size statue of the elephant it built successful 1985, for his 100th decease anniversary.

The squad down the grounds was besides amazed to larn caller lesser-known facts astir Jumbo and they're looking guardant to sharing that with the public, they said. 

"One of my favourite pieces is simply a circus supplement published by P.T. Barnum and it really advertises Jumbo's past amusement connected September 15, 1885, which is 1 of the past times that radical were capable to spot him earlier helium toured arsenic the treble Jumbo, truthful it's decidedly thing for everybody to see," said Howard. 

"I would bash immoderate digging and a fewer hours later, I'm determination other and I'd observe this marque caller photograph I'd ne'er seen before, it's conscionable perfectly breathtaking but the champion portion astir that is I get to stock that find with everybody," Korbiel added.  

The grounds is connected show until March 2026.