Souvenir of the Circus Small

Black text on blue background with an illustration of a white clown with red lips and black face paint in the center of the button. The clown is wearing a yellow and red outfit and hat.

The circus was once the most popular form of entertainment in the world.  While the idea of being entertained by horses and other animals dates back to Roman times, the “modern” circus is attributed to Philip Astley. Astley was the first to set up an amphitheatre where both horse riding tricks and acrobats could be conducted in the same space. The first circus building in the United States opened in Philadelphia in 1793. Joshuah Purdy Brown was the first circus owner to utilize a large canvas tent as a performance arena in 1825. P.T. Barnum changed the way the circus would entertain by introducing a multi-ring center stage with various visual peculiarities and menageries.