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What Is the Barnum Festival
?
For
P.T. Barnum, whose worldwide
influence is felt from
Bridgeport to Bangkok, every
day was like the Fourth of
July, every one of his
promotions produced a
fireworks display. And
that's precisely what the
Barnum Festival is a
30-day-long Fourth of July
celebration. A time to kick
back, lighten up, block out
all of the distractions in
your life and embrace a
mega-celebration of parades,
concerts, parties, drum
corps and the fireworks
extravaganza at Seaside
Park.
The Barnum Festival was
created to make people feel
good about celebrating the
life and times of P.T.
Barnum. During World War II
Bridgeport was a beehive of
activity. The city was a
working person's paradise,
supplying the brain and
brawn for the war effort.
Unfortunately, Bridgeport
learned that its dependence
on a wartime economy during
the peacetime transition
could not be sustained.
Unemployment soared to
shocking levels by the late
1940's, discretionary income
fell, the citizenry was not
in the best of moods.
The city and the region
needed a lift. Bridgeport
Brass executive Herman
Steinkraus stepped up to the
plate with an idea that
would take residents' minds
off the post-war troubles,
much like the way P.T.
Barnum thrilled and
entertained residents and
the growing number of
immigrants who escaped their
troubled foreign countries
to seek a better life in
Bridgeport in the late 19th
century.
In 1948, so that Barnum's
"kind acts may live
forever," Steinkraus and
community leaders
established the Barnum
Festival, saluting Barnum
and the people and events
that made him the greatest
showman on earth. The
Festival was the jolt of
adrenaline the area needed.
Concerts, circuses, parades,
big bands and fireworks
attracted huge crowds while
celebrating Barnum's
wide-ranging contributions
to the city.
Today, more than ever, the
Barnum Festival is an
entertaining escape for the
entire region, leading up to
America's Fourth of July
birthday celebration like a
circus parade leading
spectators to the glory of
the big top.
In case you're wondering,
Barnum was born on July 5,
probably because he wanted
the Fourth of July
celebration to last another
day. So whether you're
watching the Wing Ding
Children's Parade, the
spectacular fireworks
display at Seaside Park or
Great Street Parade roaring
down Park Avenue, remember
that the Barnum Festival is
a month-long Fourth of July
celebration. Embrace it,
enjoy it, exult in it.
Mr. Barnum is watching you.
--Lennie Grimaldi, author of Only in Bridgeport: An
Illustrated History of the
Park City
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