Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper; Also Jumbo's Biography, by the same Author (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Victorian Keeper's Memoir of Jumbo, Zoos, and Circus FameBy Matthew Scott
Length1h 30m
About this audiobook
Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper; Also Jumbo's Biography is a vivid hybrid of memoir, animal biography, and popular Victorian spectacle writing. Its pages recount Scott's life as a professional keeper while placing at the center the celebrated elephant Jumbo, whose passage from the London Zoological Gardens to P. T. Barnum's American circus made him an international curiosity. Plainspoken, affectionate, and episodic in style, the book belongs to the nineteenth-century tradition of firsthand showman narratives, combining practical animal knowledge with sentimental portraiture and public fascination with exotic creatures. Matthew Scott was not a detached observer but Jumbo's intimate guardian, a man whose authority derived from daily labor, bodily risk, and emotional attachment. His experiences in the zoo and circus worlds gave him rare access to the routines, temperaments, and commercial pressures surrounding captive animals. The autobiography suggests both pride in his profession and a desire to defend Jumbo's character against sensational rumor. This book is recommended to readers interested in Victorian popular culture, animal studies, circus history, and working-class autobiography. It offers an invaluable contemporary perspective on fame, captivity, and human-animal companionship.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.0 (51)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon
GenreBiography and Memoir
Length1 hr 30 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 29, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper; Also Jumbo's Biography, by the same Author (Annotated)
2Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper; Also Jumbo's Biography, by the same Author
3CHAPTER I.
4MY BIRTH-PLACE AND START IN LIFE.
5CHAPTER II.
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6MY FIRST EXPERIENCE AS A KEEPER.
7CHAPTER III.
8MY EXPERIENCE WITH BIRDS AT KNOWSLEY.
9CHAPTER IV.
10MY LIFE AT LORD DERBY’S SEAT, KNOWSLEY, ENGLAND.
11CHAPTER V.
12MY EXPERIENCES IN THE ZOÖLOGICAL SOCIETY’S GARDENS, LONDON—ALSO SOME REMARKS ABOUT A STRANGE BIRD, THE APTERYX.
13CHAPTER VI.
14THE PECULIAR NATURE AND HABITS OF THE APTERYX—THE STRANGEST OF ALL BIRDS.
15CHAPTER VII.
16MORE ABOUT THE APTERYX AND OSTRICH TRIBE GENERALLY.
17CHAPTER VIII.
18THE LANDSEER MEDAL, PRESENTED TO ME BY THE ZOÖLOGICAL SOCIETY, LONDON, 1866—CONCLUSION OF AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
19CHAPTER I.
20JUMBO’S FIRST APPEARANCE AT THE ZOÖLOGICAL GARDENS, LONDON.
21CHAPTER II.
22JUMBO’S COMPANION ELEPHANT ALICE, AT THE ZOÖLOGICAL GARDENS, LONDON.
23CHAPTER III.
24JUMBO AS A SWIMMER.
25CHAPTER IV.
26JUMBO’S BUSY LIFE AT THE ZOÖLOGICAL GARDENS, AND HIS LOVE FOR LITTLE CHILDREN.
27CHAPTER V.
28JUMBO’S FONDNESS FOR MUSIC AND HIS KEEPER.
29CHAPTER VI.
30ARRANGEMENTS MADE BY MR. P. T. BARNUM, “THE GREATEST SHOWMAN ON EARTH,” TO EXHIBIT JUMBO IN THE UNITED STATES.
31CHAPTER VII.
32JUMBO’S DEEP GRIEF ON PARTING WITH HIS WIFE ALICE.
33CHAPTER VIII.
34JUMBO’S DEPARTURE FROM ENGLAND AND VOYAGE TO THE UNITED STATES.
35CHAPTER IX.
36JUMBO’S HABITS, GOOD AND BAD, AND HIS GREAT POPULARITY.
37CHAPTER X.
38ACCIDENTS CAUSED HIS KEEPER BY JUMBO; ALSO, HOW HE SAVED HIS KEEPER’S LIFE.
39CHAPTER XI.
40JUMBO’S TRIP OVER THE GREAT BROOKLYN BRIDGE—DESCRIPTION OF THE STRUCTURE, ETC.
41CHAPTER XII.
42HOW JUMBO WAS IMPRESSED BY THE “GREAT BRIDGE”—VARIOUS INCIDENTS AND CONCLUSIONS.
43Memorable Quotes
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