100 years ago in Spokane: Sideshow attractions at the Interstate Fair
The Interstate Fair was underway, complete with “all of the freaks that ever were,” in the words of a Spokane Daily Chronicle headline.
The sideshows featured the following:
- Tommy, the eight-footed horse.
- Enigma, the “super-woman,” who was able to lift weights “apparently beyond the power of any human being.”
- Julius Caesar, “the horse with a human brain.” This horse was touted for its skill in “counting, spelling and making his bed for the night.”
- A woman who is “electricity-
- proof.” The Chronicle neglected to give her name, but she was able to to take “a high-voltage current through her body without any noticeable effect.”
- The Happy Monkey Family, “the delight of kids young and old.”
- The Cigarette Fiend, whose talents the Chronicle sadly neglected to specify.
From the accident beat: An unfortunate accident marred the Interstate Fair in the agricultural area.
A man was oiling a threshing machine on display. He was standing on a metal rod when his foot slipped and his hand got caught in the spinning wheels.
He was rushed to the hospital, where his hand was removed at the wrist.
Also on this date
(From the Associated Press)
1892: James J. Corbett knocked out John L. Sullivan to win the world heavyweight crown in New Orleans in a fight conducted under the Marquess of Queensberry rules.
1979: The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) made its cable TV debut.