Ashtons Circus in Australia

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Ashtons Circus

Type	circus
Founded	1847
Opened for public	1847
Last elephant left	2002
Address	PO Box 569
Zip-code	2219 NSW
Place	Sans Souci
Country	Australia
Website	Website
Related persons
Owner	-: Doug Ashton -: Joseph Ashton 1850-1889: James Henry Ashton 1889-: Fred Ashton


Directors	: James Ashton Jr.


Assistant Directors	-2000: Phyllis Ashton : Cecil Ashton : Elizabeth Critchley : Elizabeth Ryan : Ivy Ashton : Joe Ashton : Michelle Jarman : Nelly Ryan : Nikki Hicks

Performers & Artists
: Manuela Gasser : Manuela Gasser -: Mervyn Ashton -: Lorraine Ashton -: Jan Ashton -: Merrik Ashton -: Jordan Ashton -: Jack Hay -: Mickie Ashton -1983: Debbie Wirth 1879-1881: John Wirth Jr. 1879-1881: Harry Wirth 1879-1881: Philip Wirth 1879-1881: George Wirth 1879-1881: Marizles Wirth 1968-1971: Frank Gasser


Key People
Zoological department
Animal trainers
1980-1992: Fritz Schulz 1879-1881: Edith Wirth 1879-1881: May Wirth -: Dorothy Ashton -: Charles Perry

Equestrians
: Fred Maynard : Daisy Maynard : Bill Maynard


Zookeeper	-1987: George Littlejohn

Elephant department
Head keepers of elephants
1954-1967: Fritz Schulz (elephant trainer) 1978-: Marcel Peters (elephant trainer)

Elephant keepers
-: Douglas Quay

Record history
History of updates	2025-04-04:

Latest document update	2025-04-04 16:31:33

Description

Ashtons Circus, located at PO Box 569, in Sans Souci, Australia , was founded in 1847, opened for public in 1847. The last elephant left in 2002.

Casualties

3 casualties

1974-04-28: other Douglas Laing-Smith fatal attack by Abu. while he was trying loading elephants on a truck, without regular trainer present. † Douglas Laing-Smith Died 1974-04-28, Preston, Melbourne, Victoria. Douglas Laing-Smith who was a driver/attendant with the circus.
1983: artist Debbie Wirth fatal attack by Abu. while she was rewarding the elephant after pulling a truck from a bog as the circus set up in Melbourne. † Debbie Wirth Died 1983
1987-09: zookeeper George Littlejohn fatal attack by Abu. † George Littlejohn Died 1987-09, Gunnedah, NSW.

Comments / picturesThe circus was founded in Hobart, Tasmania in about 1849 by Thomas Mollor, and acquired in February 1850 by James Henry Ashton, a man schooled in the tradition of English circus and who had experienced the hard times of the nineteenth century. The circus operated as the Royal Amphitheatre or Royal Circus. When founder James Henry Ashton died in 1889, his son Fred, then aged 22, inherited the circus. The circus continued to be handed down throughout the family, and today it is run by the 6th generation of Ashtons.

A branch of the family emigrated to United States, and came over on The Queen Mary in the 1950\'s from Australia.

Ashtons Circus in Australia Australia

Ashtons' elephant truck 1950s

At its peak in the 60s, the Ashton Circus had four elephants, 25 lions and tigers, zebras and giraffes and more than 40 family members.

1963: Ashton had 3 elephants: Jumbo, Abu and Johora. (Ratcliffe)
1978: Elephants were trained by Marcel Peters.

References for records about Ashtons Circus

Recommended Citation

Koehl, Dan (2025). Ashtons Circus, Elephant Encyclopedia. Available online at https://www.elephant.se/location2.php?location_id=555. (archived at the Wayback machine)

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