Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

See the University of Virginia Library’s use policy.

Preferred Citation

Hugh N. McClure Circus Collection, Accession #13165, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

Acquisition Information

This collection was purchased from Crown Collectibles, Richmond, Virginia, November 2004.

Biographical/Historical Information

Hugh N. McClure grew up in Staunton, Virginia, and worked as a businessman in Charlottesville. He once served as a director on the Circus Fans Association of America Board and because of his connection with the circus business, there were many circus stops in Virginia with some obvious partiality paid to performances in Charlottesville and Staunton.

Scope and Content

The Hugh N. McClure circus collection consists of ca. 606 items (2 Hollinger boxes, 1 linear foot) of memorabilia and ephemera related to circuses in America. McClure began a life-long love affair with the circus as a young boy growing up in Staunton, Virginia, in the 1930s and, as a young businessman living in Charlottesville, Virginia, he promoted circus performances in his state with great passion. He established friendships with many performers, owners, and others associated with the circus, including members of the Circus Fans Association. Materials in the collection include correspondence written to McClure, as well as a number of magazine and newspaper articles. There are also membership cards, posters, tickets, programs, route statements (travel and performance itineraries), and photographs of circus performers, employees, and animals. Some material comes from the collection of fellow fan Wallace A. ("Wally") Ahlberg.

The demise of the great American circus started in the early 1950s, the decade from which much of the collection dates. Correspondence from Virginia circus fans Ethel G. Cline, C.W. Glotzbach, William W. Old, and W. Wilson Poarch, touches on the changes in circuses brought on by the advent of television, labor costs and unionization, and other developments in American society. The periodical articles in the collection offer further insight into the changes in circuses (such as the discontinuation of using the large and expensive canvas "big top" tent) while at the same time often enthusiastically praising and describing the continued spectacle of circus pageantry even during the institution's decline.

Arrangement

The papers are arranged in the following series: I. Hugh McClure Vintage Collection. II. Miscellaneous Circus Materials. Within Series I materials are generally arranged chronologically. Within Series II materials are arranged alphabetically and chronologically for correspondence.

Series I, Hugh McClure Vintage Collection, consists of circus memorabilia from the first half of the Twentieth Century accumulated by Hugh McClure

Series II, Miscellaneous Circus Materials, contains a large amount of correspondence between Hugh McClure and other circus fans as well as a large collection of newspaper and magazine article clippings on circus matters. There is also a large number of black and white photographs of circus performers, employees, and animals.