Otto Ringling SIGNED Barnum & Bailey CIRCUS Letter, STROBRIDGE / Siegrist Silbon

Description

- VERY RARE Otto Ringling SIGNED Letter 1910 -
- Beautiful, BARNUM & BAILEY Circus Letterhead -
- Addressed to the STROBRIDGE Lithographing Co. -
- Ordering 40 SIEGRIST SILBON Posters (12 Sheet) -
VERY RARE, typed-letter
SIGNED by Otto Ringling with the colorful and ornate letterhead of the BARNUM & BAILEY / “Greatest Show on Earth”
- with SUPERB circus related CONTENT.  Writing to
STROBRIDGE
,
Otto places an order for 40 SIEGRIST SILBON Show POSTERS (12 Sheet)
to be forwarded to him. The
Siegrist-Silbon
aerial act or troupe was internationally known and often incorporated 14 or 15 aerial performers. It was considered one of the most outstanding trapeze flying acts of all time.
Letter is
dated
October 25th
1910
(from Shreveport, Louisiana) with the intricately detailed,
conjugate images of both Phineas T. Barnum and James A. Bailey depicted along the top - flanked by a lion, tiger, and a clown
.  It is
addressed to the “Strobridge Lithographing Co.” of Cincinnati, Ohio
and
reads
in
full
– “
Gentlemen: Will you kindly express to the show at once, to reach us as soon as possible, 40 of the 12 sheet Siegrist Silbon bills.  If you have not that many on hand send what you may have in stock.  Yours truly / Barnum & Bailey / By Otto Ringling
(signed).”
In the lower
left hand
corner of the letter,
Otto Ringling has hand-written the following instructions – “Send to McComb, Miss.”
Just to the left of Otto’s statement, someone else has written (in a different hand) that there are “
44 left
”.  This presumably refers to the number of 12-sheet Siegrist Silbon posters on hand at Strobridge.
In the lower
right hand
corner of the letter is the
purple ink stamp of the Strobridge Litho Company’s Cincinnati Office indicating that Otto’s letter was RECEIVED
by them on October 28th 1910.
Included along with this Otto Ringling SIGNED letter is an attractive “OFFICIAL ROUTE” card from the 1910 Barnum & Bailey show season
, specifically referencing the October 25th 1910 Shreveport (Louisiana) date on this B&B letter.  The route card indicates that the B&B circus had performed in Texarkana (Arkansas) the day before this letter was written (Oct. 24th) and in Alexandria (Louisiana) on the day after (Oct. 26th).
Otto Ringling’s signature is probably the
RAREST
and most sought after of all the Ringling Brothers.  This is an important opportunity for the advanced collector to acquire a beautiful signed letter with significant circus related content.  Otto Ringling passed away a year after this letter was written.
OTTO RINGLING
(1858 - 1911)
was  one of five “founding brothers” who originally built one of the greatest dynasty’s in the history of the American circus . The Ringling Brothers bought the Barnum & Bailey Circus from the widow of James Bailey in 1907 and operated this major circus independently from their own until 1919, when they combined the two shows.  Otto was often called the "Lieutenant General" of the Ringling family.
CONDITION:
letter
measures about 8 ½ x 11 inches in size and is in EXCELLENT, original condition.  There is a single horizontal mailing fold and two vertical folds.  There is some very minor soiling / handling wear, but NO rips or tears.
Route card
measures about 5 ¼ x 6 5/8 inches in size and is in EXCELLENT overall condition as well.  There is one horizontal fold, some minor soiling, but NO rips or tears (see scans).
Otto Ringling’s signature / autograph is guaranteed authentic
.
Winning bidder to pay for shipping, postage & INSURANCE
.
Please let me know if you have any additional questions.
PLEASE READ:
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