Amelia Butler

Amelia Butler (née Wells; 1833 – May 14, 1869) was an American clown best known for being the earliest recorded female circus clown in the United States.[1][2][3]

Amelia Butler
Born
Amelia Wells

1833 (1833)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedMay 14, 1869(1869-05-14) (aged 35–36)
New York or Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
Other namesColumbine
OccupationClown
SpouseRobert Butler Butcher

Biography

Not much information is known about Butler's life and career. She was born Amelia Wells to clown John Grimaldi Wells in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1833. Her first stage experience was alongside her sisters, Mary Ann and Louisa, as "The Three Spirits". In 1854, she was working as a performer at the Chestnut Street Theatre,[4] and was touring as an "equestrienne" with Kemp's Mammoth English Circus and J. M. Nixon's Great American Circus in 1858.[5] Butler was additionally billed under the name "Columbine" at a circus in Philadelphia in 1863. She had a husband, Robert Butler Butcher, who also performed as a clown.[6][4]

Butler died of malaria on May 14, 1869 in New York or Little Rock, Arkansas, and was buried in Philadelphia.[4][5]

References

  1. ^ Loeffler-Gladstone, Nicole. "Facts on Funny Femmes". clownswithoutborders.org. Payasos Sin Fronteras. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
  2. ^ McMahan, Matthew; Senelick, Laurence (January 11, 2023). "Send in the Clowness: The Problematic Origins of Female Circus Clowns". Theatre Survey. 64 (1). Cambridge University Press: 24. doi:10.1017/S0040557422000539. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
  3. ^ Adams, Katherine H.; Keene, Michael L. (November 1, 2012). Women of the American Circus, 1880-1940. McFarland & Company. p. 184. ISBN 0786472286. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
  4. ^ a b c Brown, T. Allston (1870). History of the American Stage: Containing Biographical Sketches of Nearly Every Member of the Profession that Has Appeared on the American Stage, from 1733 to 1870. Dick & Fitzgerald. p. 58. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
  5. ^ a b Slout, William L. (January 1, 1998). Olympians of the Sawdust Circle: A Biographical Dictionary of the Nineteenth Century American Circus. Wildside Press LLC. ISBN 0809513102. Retrieved November 16, 2025.
  6. ^ Shettel, James W. (1932). The First Bareback Somersault Rider. Circus Historical Society. p. 21-52. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
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