THE BALLOON MAN

Wirth Bros' Circus - The Greatest Show on Earth


 

In 1914 the sight of Wirths elephant lying down on the Shoalhaven River Bridge caused tremendous interest and attracted a large number of residents to the bridge.
from: abc.net.au
By Open Producer Sarah Moss
Mon 14 May 2012
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In 1914 the sight of Wirths elephant lying down on the Shoalhaven River Bridge caused tremendous interest and attracted a large number of residents to the bridge.

For the last couple of weeks two members of the Shoalhaven Historical Society, Bruce and Gerry, have joined me and Derrilin at the Nowra Library to participate in the Now and Then photography workshops.

Although no photographers turned up to the workshops all was not lost as Gerry and Bruce provided a vast array of ancient images to choose from. So far we’ve been having a great time finding the original locations and superimposing our heritage snap on top. I have to admit, it’s much harder then it looks what with the sun, pedestrians, new facades and traffic. Nevertheless you’ll soon see our handy work on the project contributions page and, as we walked about town, we snuck in a few shots of signs for the latest ABC Open photography project called Snapped: Signs.

However, I hear you asking, that’s all very well but what about that elephant?

You see a funny thing happened that day in the library, Gerry and Derrilin got talking and wouldn’t you know it they can both recall the story of when in 1914 Wirths Circus Elephant Phyllis took a turn for the worse on the Shoalhaven River Bridge (now called the Nowra Bridge).

Derrilin tells an abridged version of the story to children in the Nowra Library and Jerry knew about the incident because as a member of the Shoalhaven Historical Society she has access to the original photographs. Derrilin had also read Keith Paterson’s book 'The Circus and other travelling tent shows in Shoalhaven 1855-1955' which was published by the Shoalhaven Historical Society. What a convenient coincidence.

Having watched some of the other Now and Then video stories we decided to create a short film about Phyllis, the elephant who said no. For the forthcoming film 'The elephant on the bridge" Gerry located the images, Bruce is taking care of the printing and editing and Derrilin tells the story of when Phyllis the elephant decided to stop walking the bridge and take a rest.

Once again I have to admit that ABC Open is like the gift that keeps on giving. Only three people attended the Now and Then: Series 2 photography workshops in Nowra Library and would you have a look at the outcome...Now and Then photographs, Snapped: Signs photographs, behind the scenes photographs and a short film about a historic incident involving elephants. Marvelous stuff.

The Circus and other travelling tent shows in Shoalhaven 1855-1955 by Keith Paterson is available in Australian libraries and was published by the Shoalhaven Historical Society in 2008. The book was assisted by funds allocated to the Royal Australian Historical Society by Arts NSW.