About the Photographer
Hannah Gampe, Editor in Chief
Hello! My name is Hannah and I’m (finally) a senior at TAHS. I hope to be writing the swim stories and other student and alumni spotlights. This is my...
Today’s Legend
May 30, 2019
Over the years, many stories, rumors, conspiracies and passed-by-ear tales have made their way into modern times.
Notoriously, the skull of a tiger hangs at the local Tyrone Sportsman’s Club that chased Hiram Friday’s daughter, Hannah, from their barn as she was milking a cow to their house.
There were sightings of various animals around Pennsylvania at the time: three kangaroos in Warriors Mark, panthers chasing chickens in town, parrots in the trees, “yellow dogs”, possibly hyenas, attacking in Huntingdon, a large, black snake in Scranton, and others that may not have been reported.
Since these animals lived around trains and railroads their whole life, it is possible that they hopped on trains or followed the tracks, resulting in why the circus creatures were found far away from Tyrone.
A poster advertising Zitzler’s novel outside of the Tyrone Historical Society
Apparently, for conspiracists, the Tyrone trainwreck is used as reasoning for some creatural phenomenons. Bigfoot, jackalopes, and other such krypto creatures are believed to have been interbred from the exotic circus animals and the indigenous Pennsylvania animals.
Still relevant today, every year a special remembrance service is held along Vanscoyoc Road at the site of the memorial in late May.
Today, circuses are downsizing with a greater focus on human talents rather than animal tricks. A reoccurring accident such as this is highly unlikely.
Zitzler writes in her book, “More than a century later, the people of the town take pride in their town and their ancestors who offered aid and encouragement to the stranded circus during its unscheduled stop. The annual memorial service is a community event, no longer the responsibility of whatever circus troupe happened to be traveling through… The response of the people of Tyrone to the wreck of the Walter L. Main Circus train has become a signature event in the history of Tyrone, setting a standard for community hospitality that is still respected.”
In the scheme of life and worldly events, the Tyrone circus train wreck is small, but for Tyrone’s community and the circus community, it was a significant moment in our history that will forever be remembered and mourned.
An elephant lays a wreath on a tombstone in 1958 during a memorial service