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30In the late 1930s, when he toured with the Ringling Brothers/Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth, Terrell Jacobs had as many as fifty-two lions, tigers, and leopards snarling and leaping in his big-cat act. But in 1940, he decided to become master of his own fate, so he and his wife bought 12 acres in rural Miami County. There he erected two good-sized barns%u2014one mainly for elephants, the other primarily for big cats%u2014and the Terrell Jacobs Wild Animal Circus was born. Unfortunately, destiny intervened and led to the demise of both Terrell%u2019s marriage, and his circus. By 1945, all of Jacobs%u2019 assets were sold to Arthur Wirtz, owner/manager of Chicago Stadium%u2014a large entertainment venue.During that same period, the Cole Brothers Circus was having its own ups and downs. For years it had been a huge, thriving, traveling operation until luck run out in 1940. That%u2019s when its Rochester, Indiana winter quarters burned to the ground. After struggling for a decade, the circus went bankrupt, and was bought by Arthur Wirtz in 1950. He moved it to the former Jacobs%u2019 place, which would be its new winter quarters.Sadly, Wirtz, who%u2019d done well booking acts for his Windy City establishment, found running a massive ever-moving enterprise of performers, crew, animals, train cars, trucks, wagons, and vast amounts of gear, along with all the endless advertising, was simply more than he and his partners could manage. Unable to make a go of it, the Cole Brothers Circus, once again, went under.In 1954, Paul and Dottie Kelly bought the former circus winter quarters from Wirtz, along with most of the Cole Brothers menagerie and equipment. Unlike Wirtz, Paul Kelly had come from a circus family and knew the business well. Although he and Dottie had lived %u201cnormal%u201d settled lives in Chicago for a time, circus life eventually proved an irresistible lure.With their newly acquired assets, Paul and Dottie created their own acts which they performed at Shrine Circuses. They also crisscrossed the Midwest doing promotional work for local businesses. At a Pontiac, Michigan mall event, their much-loved elephant, Jenny, died and was buried nearby. Some say she lies under a parking lot to this day. Back home on their Miami County property, the Kellys opened the Circus Quarters Animal Zoo & Fun Park. A popular family destination, it boasted a miniature passenger train, animal Forgotten circus barnsrides, merry-go-round, concessions, restaurant, Ferris wheel, and more. But, eventually, the Kellys decided the time had come to retire. So, Paul began selling, or auctioning off, just about everything%u2014except the land and the buildings on it. By the 1970s, the Kellys%u2019 enterprises were no more.Decades later, while driving along U.S. 31 near Peru, John and I spotted a pair of huge forlorn white barns set back from the highway. We decided they were probably long abandoned, gambrel-roofed dairy barns. After making several phone calls, we learned to our delight that they were not meant for milk cows, but for circus animals. Not only that, the owners, Dottie Kelly and her son, Ed, still lived on the property. Plans for a visit were immediately made.Arriving at their small modular home a few weeks later, we were greeted by Ed%u2019s sister, Marilyn, who was visiting for their mom%u2019s 98th birthday. As we stepped inside, we became totally immersed in circus memorabilia. Memories flowed, as Dottie regaled us with stories of her trained goats and seals, a Look magazine cover featuring her pink-elephant act, and her TV appearances on %u201cTo Tell the Truth%u201d and %u201cI%u2019ve Got a Secret.%u201d Ed reminisced about his beloved white mare, Rowdy, whose portrait hung on a nearby wall.As we closed a bulging scrapbook, Ed offered us a tour of the two barns. Despite having bad knees, he maneuvered his aluminum walker through the rough weeds into the Big Cat Barn. %u201cYou know,%u201d he said, %u201csince the 1920s Peru%u2019s been known as the Circus City. Many circuses wintered in this area because of the good supply of hay and water, as well as easy access to highways and railroads.%u201d As our eyes adjusted, the dusky barn%u2019s interior began to reveal itself. A series of raised, built-in cages encircled half its perimeter. On the floor, a large, unusual, circular demarcation stood out. %u201cThat%u2019s where the rehearsal and performance cage once stood. Tiered seating surrounded it,%u201d Ed informed us. Here and there, sections of painted, wooden, circus bric-a-brac d%u00e9cor still lay about. Looking around, Ed mused, almost to himself, %u201cLions and tigers lived here, but it was the smaller cougars I considered my pets.%u201d Breaking Ed%u2019s reverie, John asked, %u201cWhere did your hippo live?%u201d Ed nodded toward a small corner room. Opening its door,