In the Spotlight
THE SAMWELL FAMILY
The Samwell family (whose name was probably Samuel originally, and would sometimes be spelled Samwells later) is one of England’s oldest circus dynasties. Although they may never have attained the prominence of Philip Astley, Charles Hughes, Andrew Ducrow, George Sanger, and other luminaries of the British circus, they still hold an important place in circus history. Their origins are blurred in time, and they have apparently been touring and performing long before the creation of the circus by Philip Astley in 1770. Like for many itinerant performers of that era, circus soon proved an ideal setting for their line of work, and the Samwells turned into circus performers and entrepreneurs, thus establishing one of the very first circus dynasties... (
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