Those of you who live in Sarasota, FL, have surely seen the amazing replica of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus in the Ringling Museum complex. The 3/4-inch to 1-foot scale replica was built by Howard Tibbals beginning in 1956 was completed in 1974. The current installation was set up in 2004, taking year to set up.
- It contains 44,000 items, not including small pieces such as thousands of railroad stakes.
- It consists of eight large tents, 152 circus wagons, 1,500 workers and performers, 7,000 folding chairs and more than 500 hand-carved animals.
- Everything can be packed up into the 55 train cars, also individually hand-crafted.
- The display includes seven miniature video stations positioned in various tents with documentary footage of circus life from the 1920s and 1930s.
If you haven’t seen it you really should.
MORAG REID PHOTOS 
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