“The Elephant” broadside, 1797
Courtesy of the Collection of the New-York Historical Society, SY1797 no. 26
Jacob Crowninshield brought the first live elephant to the United States in 1796. The two-year-old pachyderm – which the American merchant had purchased for $450 in Bengal – was exhibited in cities such as Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Salem. Visitors could see the exotic animal firsthand for only twenty-five cents, setting a precedent for later circuses.