Lord George Sanger: Difference between revisions

George Sanger
George Sanger
Born	23 December 1825; Newbury, Berkshire
Died	28 November 1911 (aged 85); East Finchley, London
Other names	Lord George Sanger
Occupation	circus proprietor

Browse history interactively

← Previous edit

Content deleted Content added

VisualWikitext

Inline

Latest revision as of 15:17, 11 April 2024

'Lord' George Sanger (23 December 1825^{[nb 1]} – 28 November 1911) was an English showman and circus proprietor. Born to a showman father, he grew up working in travelling peep shows. He successfully ran shows and circuses throughout much of the nineteenth century with his brother John. He retired in 1905 and was murdered by a disgruntled employee in 1911.

Early life

Sanger was born on 23 December, probably 1825, in Newbury, Berkshire to James Sanger. James Sanger, the son of a Wiltshire farmer, had been pressed into the service of the Royal Navy at a young age, where he learned conjuring tricks, and later, as a navy pensioner, became a showman.^[1]^[3] He and his wife, named Sarah Elliott, travelled the country in a caravan, showing human curiosities and a peep show.^[4] After they began to have children, the family settled in Trowbridge and then Newbury, where George was born.

George Sanger was the sixth of ten children, and the youngest son.^[5] The children grew up helping with their father's business. As a young man, Sanger made his first start in business, independent of his father, as an animal tamer.^[6] His first "troupe" consisted of canaries, redpoles, white mice and later, hares. He taught them to fire miniature cannons and walk tightropes. The show was a success and he exhibited at private parties, although he drew a few accusations of witchcraft from rural villagers.^[7]

Partnership

Sanger started a travelling conjuring show with his older brothers William and John.^[8] Sanger had earned the nickname "Gentleman George" from fellow showmen, and "his Lordship" from his father, for the smart way he dressed. In 1848, the three brothers took their show to Stepney Fair.^[9] Here, he renewed an acquaintance with a woman he knew from his childhood called Ellen Chapman. She was a lion tamer employed by George Wombwell,^[10] known professionally as Madame Pauline de Vere.^[11] They married on 1 December 1850 in Sheffield.^[1]

John and George Sanger decided to take their show to country fairs, believing that they would make more money than at the fairs in London.^[12] In the winter of 1850–51 they returned to London and, in addition to their conjuring show, they rented Enon Chapel—a former charnel house— to run a "sort of winter theatrical show".^[13] They employed actors and put on a Christmas pantomime. After being informed that not all of the bodies improperly buried at the site had been removed, and that the authorities intended to close the building, the Sangers moved out.^[14]

In 1851, the brothers took their show to The Great Exhibition fair in Knightsbridge, an event that, due to heavy rain, was a disappointment to the showmen.^[15] The fair was abandoned and the Sangers moved on to the north of England. After another successful season at Stepney Fair (with a 'tame oyster'), the brothers decided to start a circus.^[16] Their first purchase for the circus was a Welsh pony, for £7 and their assistants were two nieces, a nephew and four apprentices.^[17]

In 1871, the Sanger brothers bought Astley's Amphitheatre for £11,000 and George Sanger ran it for 28 years until the London County Council ordered it to be closed in 1893.^[1]^[18] Sanger ended his professional relationship with his brother John in 1884.

Later life

From the 1880s, Sanger became active in defending the rights of showmen and was the president of the Van Dwellers Protection Association (which later became the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain).^[1]

George Sanger built his Amphitheatre on the corner of High Street and George Street in Ramsgate, Kent, in 1883. Initially it was a circus building but was also used for opera and drama from its early days.

The building was converted to a theatre in 1908 by Frank Matcham, a well known and prolific builder of theatres, and was renamed the Royal Palace Theatre. Films were also shown and in 1929 the theatre was equipped to facilitate talking movies. Films, variety and theatre continued until early 1961 when the last pint was pulled in Sangers Bar and the theatre was demolished along with the adjoining Sanger's Hotel.

In 1903, he presented a statue of Queen Victoria to the town of Newbury, to stand in the same position occupied by his father's stall years before.^[5]^[19]

In 1905, Sanger sold off his zoo and circus effects, auctioned by circus auctioneer Tom Norman.^[20] He retired to Park Farm in East Finchley, north London, and published an autobiography in 1910.^[1]

Death

On 28 November 1911 George Sanger was murdered with a hatchet at his home by employee Herbert Charles Cooper, for unknown reasons. Cooper then committed suicide on a railway line.^[1] Sanger was buried on 4 December next to his wife's grave in Margate.

Works

Sanger, George (1926) [1910], Seventy Years a Showman, New York: E. P. Dutton, OCLC 3775375

References

Notes

^ Brenda Assael in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography gives Sanger's date of birth as "23 December probably in 1825".^[1] In his autobiography, Sanger gave the date "December 23rd, 1827".^[2]

Footnotes

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Assael, Brenda (September 2004). "Sanger, George (1825?–1911)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 1 (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35940. Retrieved 22 June 2010. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^ Sanger, p. 14
^ Sanger, pp. 5–7
^ Sanger, p. 10
^ ^a ^b Sanger, p. 15
^ Sanger, p. 99
^ Sanger, p. 100
^ Sanger, p. 116
^ Sanger, p. 120
^ "Chapman [married name Sanger], Ellen (1830/31–1899), lion tamer". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/53839. Retrieved 28 October 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^ Sanger, p. 121
^ Sanger, p. 131
^ Sanger, p. 156
^ Sanger, p. 159
^ Sanger, p. 163
^ Sanger, p. 185
^ Sanger, p. 186
^ Sanger, p. 198
^ ""Lord" George Sanger: Aged Showman Brutally Murdered", The Evening Post, vol. LXXXIII, no. 8, p. 11, 10 January 1912, retrieved 22 June 2010
^ Toulmin, Vanessa (January 2008). "Norman, Tom (1860–1930)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/73081. Retrieved 19 May 2010. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

Sources

Sanger, George (2008) [1910], Seventy Years a Showman, Read Books, ISBN 978-1-4437-3113-3

External links

Assael, Brenda (9 July 2021). "Vintage Circus Photos from the Sanger Circus Collection". daily.jstor.org. JStor Daily. Retrieved 8 November 2021. (Contains images of Sanger's Circus from around 1900)
>Bailes, Kathy (2 October 2017). "Rare photos from Hall By The Sea owner Lord Sanger's circus to go under the hammer". theisleofthanetnews.com. Isle of Thanet News. Retrieved 8 November 2021. (Vintage photographs of Sanger's Circus)

[3] Brenda Assael in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography gives Sanger's date of birth as "23 December probably in 1825".^[1] In his autobiography, Sanger gave the date "December 23rd, 1827".^[2]

[odnb-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Assael, Brenda (September 2004). "Sanger, George (1825?–1911)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 1 (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35940. Retrieved 22 June 2010. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

[Sanger14-2] Sanger, p. 14

[Sanger5-4] Sanger, pp. 5–7

[Sanger10-5] Sanger, p. 10

[Sanger15-6] Sanger, p. 15

[Sanger99-7] Sanger, p. 99

[Sanger100-8] Sanger, p. 100

[Sanger116-9] Sanger, p. 116

[Sanger120-10] Sanger, p. 120

[11] "Chapman [married name Sanger], Ellen (1830/31–1899), lion tamer". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/53839. Retrieved 28 October 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

[Sanger121-12] Sanger, p. 121

[Sanger131-13] Sanger, p. 131

[Sanger156-14] Sanger, p. 156

[Sanger159-15] Sanger, p. 159

[Sanger163-16] Sanger, p. 163

[Sanger185-17] Sanger, p. 185

[Sanger186-18] Sanger, p. 186

[Sanger198-19] Sanger, p. 198

[Post-20] ""Lord" George Sanger: Aged Showman Brutally Murdered", The Evening Post, vol. LXXXIII, no. 8, p. 11, 10 January 1912, retrieved 22 June 2010

[odnbTN-21] Toulmin, Vanessa (January 2008). "Norman, Tom (1860–1930)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/73081. Retrieved 19 May 2010. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

[nb 1]

[1]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[2]

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 | resting_place =
 | resting_place_coordinates =
-| residence =
 | nationality =
 | other_names =Lord George Sanger
@@ Line 19: / Line 18: @@
 | employer =
 | occupation =circus proprietor
-| religion =
 | spouse =
 | partner =
@@ Line 27: / Line 25: @@
 | footnotes =
 }}
-'''Lord George Sanger''' (23 December 1825{{#tag:ref|Brenda Assael in the ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]'' gives Sanger's date of birth as "23 December probably in 1825".<ref name=odnb /> In his autobiography, Sanger gave the date "December 23rd, 1827".<ref name=Sanger14 />|group="nb"}}&nbsp;– 28 November 1911) was an English showman and [[circus]] proprietor. Born to a showman father, he grew up working in travelling [[peep show]]s. He successfully ran shows and circuses throughout much of the nineteenth century with his brother [[John Sanger|John]]. He retired in 1905 and was murdered by an employee in 1911.
+''''Lord' George Sanger''' (23 December 1825{{#tag:ref|Brenda Assael in the ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]'' gives Sanger's date of birth as "23 December probably in 1825".<ref name=odnb /> In his autobiography, Sanger gave the date "December 23rd, 1827".<ref name=Sanger14 />|group="nb"}}&nbsp;– 28 November 1911) was an English [[showman]] and [[circus]] proprietor. Born to a showman father, he grew up working in travelling [[peep show]]s. He successfully ran shows and circuses throughout much of the nineteenth century with his brother [[John Sanger|John]]. He retired in 1905 and was murdered by a disgruntled employee in 1911.
 ==Early life==
-Sanger was born 23 December, probably 1825, in [[Newbury, Berkshire]] to James Sanger. James Sanger, the son of a [[Wiltshire]] farmer, had been [[Impressment|pressed]] into the service of the [[Royal Navy]] at a young age, where he learned conjuring tricks, and later, as a navy pensioner, became a showman.<ref name=odnb /><ref name=Sanger5 /> He and his wife, named Sarah Elliott, travelled the country in a caravan, showing human curiosities and a [[peep show]].<ref name=Sanger10 /> After they began to have children, the family settled in [[Trowbridge]] and then Newbury, where George was born. George Sanger was the sixth of ten children, and the youngest son.<ref name=Sanger15 /> The children grew up helping with their father's business. As a young man, Sanger made his first start in business, independent of his father, as an [[animal tamer]].<ref name=Sanger99 /> His first "troupe" consisted of canaries, [[Redpoll|redpoles]], white mice and later, hares. He taught them to fire miniature cannons and walk [[tightrope]]s. The show was a success and he exhibited at private parties, although he drew a few accusations of witchcraft from rural villagers.<ref name=Sanger100 />
+Sanger was born on 23 December, probably 1825, in [[Newbury, Berkshire]] to James Sanger. James Sanger, the son of a [[Wiltshire]] farmer, had been [[Impressment|pressed]] into the service of the [[Royal Navy]] at a young age, where he learned conjuring tricks, and later, as a navy pensioner, became a showman.<ref name=odnb /><ref name=Sanger5 /> He and his wife, named Sarah Elliott, travelled the country in a caravan, showing human curiosities and a [[peep show]].<ref name=Sanger10 /> After they began to have children, the family settled in [[Trowbridge]] and then Newbury, where George was born.
+George Sanger was the sixth of ten children, and the youngest son.<ref name=Sanger15 /> The children grew up helping with their father's business. As a young man, Sanger made his first start in business, independent of his father, as an [[animal tamer]].<ref name=Sanger99 /> His first "troupe" consisted of canaries, [[Redpoll|redpoles]], white mice and later, hares. He taught them to fire miniature cannons and walk [[tightrope]]s. The show was a success and he exhibited at private parties, although he drew a few accusations of witchcraft from rural villagers.<ref name=Sanger100 />
 ==Partnership==
-Sanger started a travelling conjuring show with his older brothers William and [[John Sanger|John]].<ref name=Sanger116 /> Sanger had earned the nickname "Gentleman George" from fellow showmen, and "his Lordship" from his father, for the smart way he dressed. In 1848, the three brothers took their show to [[Stepney Fair]].<ref name=Sanger120 /> Here, he renewed an acquaintance with a woman he knew form his childhood called Ellen Chapman. She was a lion tamer, known professionally as Madame Pauline de Vere.<ref name=Sanger121 /> They married on 1 December 1850 in [[Sheffield]].<ref name=odnb />
+Sanger started a travelling conjuring show with his older brothers William and [[John Sanger|John]].<ref name=Sanger116 /> Sanger had earned the nickname "Gentleman George" from fellow showmen, and "his Lordship" from his father, for the smart way he dressed. In 1848, the three brothers took their show to [[Stepney Fair]].<ref name=Sanger120 /> Here, he renewed an acquaintance with a woman he knew from his childhood called [[Ellen Chapman (lion tamer)|Ellen Chapman]]. She was a lion tamer employed by [[George Wombwell]],<ref>{{Cite ODNB|title=Chapman [married name Sanger], Ellen (1830/31–1899), lion tamer|url=https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-53839|access-date=2020-10-28|year = 2004|language=en|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/53839}}</ref> known professionally as Madame Pauline de Vere.<ref name=Sanger121 /> They married on 1 December 1850 in [[Sheffield]].<ref name=odnb />
 [[File:Sanger's amphitheatre - Evanion collection (1886) - BL.jpg|thumb|right|Poster for ''Aladdin & Forty Thieves'' at Sanger's Amphitheatre in 1886]]
@@ Line 45: / Line 45: @@
 From the 1880s, Sanger became active in defending the rights of showmen and was the president of the Van Dwellers Protection Association (which later became the [[Showmen's Guild of Great Britain]]).<ref name=odnb />
-George Sanger built his Amphitheatre on the corner of High Street and George Street in Ramsgate in 1883. Initially it was a circus building but was also used for opera and drama from its early days.
+George Sanger built his Amphitheatre on the corner of High Street and George Street in [[Ramsgate]], Kent, in 1883. Initially it was a circus building but was also used for opera and drama from its early days.
-The building was converted to a theatre in 1908 by Frank Matcham, a well known and prolific builder of theatres, and was renamed the Royal Palace Theatre. Films were also shown and in 1929 the theatre was equipped to facilitate talking movies. Films, variety and theatre continued until early 1961 when the last pint was pulled in Sangers Bar and the theatre was demolished along with the adjoining Sanger's Hotel.
+The building was converted to a theatre in 1908 by [[Frank Matcham]], a well known and prolific builder of theatres, and was renamed the Royal Palace Theatre. Films were also shown and in 1929 the theatre was equipped to facilitate talking movies. Films, variety and theatre continued until early 1961 when the last pint was pulled in Sangers Bar and the theatre was demolished along with the adjoining Sanger's Hotel.
-In 1903, he presented a statue of [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]] to the town of Newbury, to stand in the same position occupied by his father's shop years before.<ref name=Sanger15 /><ref name=Post />
-In 1905, Sanger sold off his zoo and circus effects, auctioned by circus auctioneer [[Tom Norman]].<ref name=odnbTN /> He retired to Park Farm in [[East Finchley]], London, and published an autobiography in 1910.<ref name=odnb /> On 28 November 1911 George Sanger was murdered with a [[hatchet]] at his home by employee Herbert Charles Cooper, for unknown reasons. Cooper then committed suicide.<ref name=odnb /> Sanger was buried on 4 December next to his wife's grave in Margate.
+In 1903, he presented a statue of [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]] to the town of Newbury, to stand in the same position occupied by his father's stall years before.<ref name=Sanger15 /><ref name=Post />
+In 1905, Sanger sold off his zoo and circus effects, auctioned by circus auctioneer [[Tom Norman]].<ref name=odnbTN /> He retired to Park Farm in [[East Finchley]], north London, and published an [[autobiography]] in 1910.<ref name=odnb />
+== Death ==
+On 28 November 1911 George Sanger was murdered with a [[hatchet]] at his home by employee Herbert Charles Cooper, for unknown reasons. Cooper then committed suicide on a railway line.<ref name="odnb" /> Sanger was buried on 4 December next to his wife's grave in [[Margate]].
 ==Works==
@@ Line 60: / Line 64: @@
   | location = New York
   | year =1926
-  | origyear = 1910
+  | orig-year = 1910
   | oclc =3775375 }}
@@ Line 68: / Line 72: @@
 ;Footnotes
 {{Reflist|colwidth=30em|refs=
-<ref name=odnb>{{Citation  | last = Assael  | first = Brenda  | title = Sanger, George (1825?–1911)  | newspaper = [[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]  | publisher = [[Oxford University Press]]  | date = September 2004  | url = http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35940  | doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/35940  | accessdate =22 June 2010
+<ref name=odnb>{{Cite ODNB  | last = Assael  | first = Brenda  | title = Sanger, George (1825?–1911)  | volume = 1  | date = September 2004  | url = http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35940  | doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/35940  | access-date =22 June 2010
 }}</ref>
 <ref name=Sanger14>[[#Sanger|Sanger]], p. 14</ref>
@@ Line 86: / Line 90: @@
 <ref name=Sanger186>[[#Sanger|Sanger]], p. 186</ref>
 <ref name=Sanger198>[[#Sanger|Sanger]], p. 198</ref>
-<ref name=Post>{{Citation  | title = "Lord" George Sanger: Aged Showman Brutally Murdered  | newspaper = [[The Evening Post (New Zealand)|The Evening Post]]  | date = 10 January 1912 | volume = LXXXIII  | issue = 8  | page = 11  | url = http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=EP19120110.2.125  | accessdate =22 June 2010
+<ref name=Post>{{Citation  | title = "Lord" George Sanger: Aged Showman Brutally Murdered  | newspaper = [[The Evening Post (New Zealand)|The Evening Post]]  | date = 10 January 1912 | volume = LXXXIII  | issue = 8  | page = 11  | url = http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=EP19120110.2.125  | access-date =22 June 2010
 }}</ref>
-<ref name=odnbTN>{{Citation  | last = Toulmin  | first = Vanessa  | title = Norman, Tom (1860–1930)  | work = Oxford Dictionary of National Biography  | publisher = Oxford University Press  | date = January 2008  | url = http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/articleHL/73081?docPos=2&anchor=match  | accessdate =19 May 2010  | doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/73081
+<ref name=odnbTN>{{Cite ODNB  | last = Toulmin  | first = Vanessa |author-link=Vanessa Toulmin | title = Norman, Tom (1860–1930)  | date = January 2008  | url = http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/articleHL/73081?docPos=2&anchor=match  | access-date =19 May 2010  | doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/73081
 }}</ref>
 }}
@@ Line 99: / Line 103: @@
   | publisher = Read Books
   | year =2008
-  | origyear = 1910
+  | orig-year = 1910
   | oclc =
   | ref=Sanger
   | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=BoQVo8VPEqMC
   | isbn = 978-1-4437-3113-3}}
-{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2010}}
+==External links==
+{{Commons category}}
+*{{cite web |last1=Assael |first1=Brenda |title=Vintage Circus Photos from the Sanger Circus Collection |url=https://daily.jstor.org/vintage-circus-photos-sanger-circus-collection/ |website=daily.jstor.org |publisher=JStor Daily |access-date=8 November 2021 |date=9 July 2021}} (Contains images of Sanger's Circus from around 1900)
+*>{{cite web |last1=Bailes |first1=Kathy |title=Rare photos from Hall By The Sea owner Lord Sanger's circus to go under the hammer |url=https://theisleofthanetnews.com/2017/10/02/rare-collection-of-19th-century-hall-by-the-sea-owner-lord-sanger-to-go-under-the-hammer/ |website=theisleofthanetnews.com |publisher=Isle of Thanet News |access-date=8 November 2021 |date=2 October 2017}} (Vintage photographs of Sanger's Circus)
+{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
+{{Authority control}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanger, George}}
 [[Category:1825 births]]
 [[Category:1911 deaths]]
+[[Category:Axe murder]]
 [[Category:People from Newbury, Berkshire]]
 [[Category:English murder victims]]
 [[Category:People murdered in England]]
-[[Category:Deaths by blade weapons]]
+[[Category:British circus owners]]

Authority control databases
International	FAST ISNI VIAF WorldCat
National	Frankreich BnF data Deutschland Belgien Vereinigte Staaten Australien Niederlande
Menschen	Trove
Other	SNAC