Anna Swan
After returning home from Truro, Anna began to think more about Barnum's offer. She saw an opportunity to earn a living and further her education. She traveled to New York with her parents to visit the museum and talk to Barnum.
Barnum's American Museum was a collection of oddities. It was located at the corner of Anne Street and Broadway. It was full of unusual people, animals and elaborate hoaxes. Barnum offered Anna $23.00 a week in gold. He paid her lodging, bought her clothes and retained a tutor. The tutor was also to act as Anna's chaperone, which was common for young women in the Victorian Era.
Anna's contract with Barnum also had a clause that would allow Anna's mother to stay in New York and travel between the city and her home in Nova Scotia. Though Barnum was known not to treat the people who were in his employ very well, he treated Anna in a good manner.
Anna excelled at her studies of acting, piano and voice. Her performances included playing the piano, giving lectures and playing the part of Lady Macbeth.
Barnum billed Anna as, "The Tallest Woman in the World." He encouraged her to wear her hair in a particular style so she would appear to be 8 foot 1 inch tall. He had a dress made for her that contained 100 yards of satin and 50 yards of lace. It cost over $1,000.00., which was a fortune at the time.
Anna enjoyed her life in New York, but often felt homesick. Her letters told of other Barnum curiosities such as the Dog-Faced Boy, siamese twins, and the Living Skeleton. One of her closest friends was the 2 foot 5 inch dwarf, Tom Thumb.
Anna always sent money home to her parents and visited as often as she could. The Swans had twelve children. They were thankful for the stipend that Anna sent.
Barnum took Anna on her first trip to Europe in 1863. On this trip she was presented to Queen Victoria.
Fire destroyed Barnum's museum in 1863. Anna was trapped on the third floor, but was able to escape. She lost her life savings of $1200.00 in gold. The museum was completely destroyed.
To read the rest of Anna's story, please see Anna Swan Part Two.
Anna Swan Links:
At this site, you can watch a twenty minute video on the life of Anna Swan.
http://www.3dgraphics.ns.ca/anna_swan.ht...
Here you can see a
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