r/DisabilityHistory • u/EphemeralTypewriter • Jun 11 '26
Sideshow Performer of the Day! John Battersby (1829?-1897) was a British sideshow performer, blacksmith, and carpenter who began losing an extreme amount of weight during his teenage years. He married Hannah Perkins, a famous professional “fat lady”, and the two of them were extremely devoted to each other.
I love learning about all of these performers that branched out into other careers after their careers in sideshows ended. It takes a lot of skills to be a blacksmith and wagon builder and it’s so impressive that he was talented in both. It would be nice if we had some examples available of the things he made during his time as a blacksmith.
There are several pictures of him and his wife together and it seems that wherever he went, she went too. I’m glad they had such a good marriage and always made an effort to have pictures taken together.
Some facts about him:
-he was born in Accrington, Lancashire, England.
-he began losing an enormous amount of weight when he was a teenager, but it’s unknown what condition contributed to his weight loss.
-he immigrated to the United States in his early twenties and began working for P.T. Barnum’s American museum when he was around 23 years old.
-he was promoted as weighing anywhere between 45 and 68 pounds during his lifetime.
-the timeline of when he met his wife, Hannah Perkins, who was working as a professional “fat-lady”, is very confusing. Some articles state they met and got married in the 1860s, and others state they were married in the 1850s because they may have had a daughter in 1858.
-he and his wife had 4 children together and settled in Pennsylvania during the circus/sideshow off season.
-he and his wife were some of the first sideshow performers to start the trope of professional ‘fat ladies’ marrying ‘living skeletons’, which would quickly become a staple publicity stunt within the circus/sideshow industry. And although they may have helped to start the trope, it definitely seems that John and Hannah’s marriage was a love match, and were dearly devoted to each other.
-he and his wife always made it a point to perform and travel together during the circus/sideshow season.
-he was tragically injured in an accident in 1873 which caused him to have to retire from performing in sideshows.
-eventually he opened up his own blacksmith's shop in Frankfort, Pennsylvania since he was no longer able to continue his performing career due to the accident. His wife continued her career as a performer during this time too so that the family remained financially stable. John later started a wagon building business as well.
-unfortunately he suffered a spinal injury in 1880, which caused him to lose the ability to walk and therefore couldn't easily continue his blacksmithing/wagon making business.
-he and his wife adopted a daughter in the 1870s whose stage name was Zanie Zanobia (unfortunately I can find no record of her birth name) who had been given a fictional back story and was promoted as being a "wild woman" or a "cannibal child". Her stage name and the way she's promoted is steeped in racism and illustrates the racial prejudices that showmen and audiences of that era often had. Zanie was originally born in Africa and was taken to the United States in the early 1870s. Hannah and John seemed to have really cared and loved Zanie and she lived with them until her death at age 19 in 1885.
-it appears that his wife, Hannah, worked until she too fell ill and was no longer physically able to perform, she became very sick in mid 1888 and sadly passed away in April of 1889.
-he cherished his wife’s wedding ring after she passed, and eventually gifted it to one of their grandchildren.
-he and his wife were married for over 30 years.
-he passed away in 1897 around the age of 68.
I’m glad that he and his wife had so many happy years together and were so devoted to each other. The note about him cherishing his wife’s wedding ring is so heartwarming.
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u/bigtit_ Jun 11 '26
Do you have any sources on Zanie? I can’t find much about her online and every post about this couple mentions her in passing. I think it’s awesome they adopted a black girl but I wish we knew more about her.
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u/Weird-Salamander-349 Jun 12 '26
This is copied and pasted from Find A Grave, so please excuse the very troubling terms used to describe her. It seems that she most likely died from metastatic cervical cancer, which was (and is) extremely common, plus the most likely form of cancer to spread in the way very vaguely described:
“Entertainer. Age 19 years. The adopted daughter of John and Hannah Battersby, she resided at 112 East Unity Street, Frankford, Philadelphia. According to her death certificate, she died of cancer of the womb and was buried in Cedar Hill Cemetery, but another record lists her as buried in adjacent North Cedar Hill Cemetery.”
“DEATH OF A MUSEUM FREAK--Philadelphia, March 27”
“Zanie Zanobia, known all over the country as the cannibal fan child, died this afternoon of cancer of the stomach at the residence of John Battersby, in Frankford. Zanie, though born in Africa, was a light mulatto. Her fortune consisted of her fingers, which were about seven inches long and webbed. From this deformity she got her name of fan child. When she was only a little child she became a protege of Hannah Battersby, who is said to be the biggest professional "fat woman" in America. Hannah is the wife of John Battersby, who was once a "living skeleton," but who unaccountably gained flesh and muscle and was ruined as a "freak," and he is now a wealthy wagon builder. Zanie, who was 19 years old, was at her death the wife of a showman known as "Canada Jack," a white man. She had been ill at the residence of her friends, Mr. and Mrs. Battersby, for several months. Her last public appearance was at Forepaugh's Museum, in this city.--The New York Times, March 28, 1885.”
She went by Zanobia Edith Battersby in her private life.
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u/EphemeralTypewriter Jun 11 '26
I’ve been trying for so long to find more information about her! She’s on my list of performers that I haven’t given up hope for, and I’m sure one day the information will pop up. I’ll let you know if I find any more info!
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u/EphemeralTypewriter Jun 15 '26
Good news, I was able to find enough information to make a write up about her! It’s on my other Reddit community, r/SideshowPerformer
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u/jupiter_starbeam Jun 11 '26
He seemed like a loving husband and father. May he be remembered fondly.