Highlights Archives
The Great Circus Parade & Festival in Baraboo
Building upon the success and popularity of last year's return of The Great Circus Parade and Festival to Baraboo, Wisconsin, the annual event will once again take place in the town known as the birthplace of the Ringling Bros. Circus. When the 39th edition of The Great Circus Parade steps off at noon on Saturday, June 25, it will also turn a new page in circus history — the only other time the parade was staged in consecutive years in Baraboo was in 1962 and 1963 (and once in 1980), thus beginning a new circus tradition.
Baraboo's Great Circus Festival will take place on the grounds of Circus World Museum beginning Friday, June 24, and running through Sunday, June 26, with the festival grounds opening at 9 a.m. daily. Admission to Circus World Museum and the festival grounds is free throughout the weekend. The festival will feature a myriad of free midway and museum attractions, and festival goers may also purchase tickets to a variety of live performances and rides. Ticketed shows include the Big Top Circus, KidsWorld Circus and the all-new Tiger Adventure. Ticketed rides include a magnificent menagerie featuring elephant, camel and pony rides as well as mechanical rides like the magical carousel and mighty miniature train.
The two-hour parade at noon Saturday will follow a 2½-mile route beginning and ending at the Sauk County Fairgrounds (not open to public). The parade is free, with a limited number of reserved bleacher seats also available for purchase through Circus World Museum. This year's parade will feature 35 historic circus wagons, 15 bands, 1,200 costumed participants, 350 horses and nearly two-dozen exotic animals. Visit Circus World's Web site for complete details on the festival and a map of the parade route.
Circus World Museum is open year round, and is located at 550 Water Street in Baraboo on the site of the Ringling Bros. Circus winter quarters — a National Historic Landmark. The museum's 39 buildings are situated on 63 scenic acres along the Baraboo River. With a collection containing more than one million circus artifacts and so much space, Circus World is the largest museum of its kind in the world. The museum is owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society and operated by the nonprofit Circus World Museum Foundation, Inc.
On Sunday, celebrate the Ringling Brothers’ stupendous rise to circus fame with well-known writer Jerry Apps. At noon at Circus World’s Irvin Feld Center Theater, Apps will speak about the Ringling boys and sign copies of his book Ringlingville USA, recently published by the Wisconsin Historical Society Press. Pick up a copy for yourself or a circus-loving friend!
For more information, call 1-866-693-1500, or visit Circus World's Web site.
:: Posted June 20, 2005
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