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Rare Gen. Tom Thumb Wedding Album Locket.
Lot 15. Rare Gen. Tom Thumb Wedding Album Locket. Just under a height of three feet, “Thumb” was a major star of P. T. Barnum’s circus in the mid-1800s. His real name was Sherwood Edward Stratton, born in 1838 in Connecticut. Normal except for his size, Stratton was only four, and about two feet tall, when he began touring with the circus. Barnum presented him as an 11-year-old. The child sang, danced and impersonated widely recognized individuals. He was wildly popular in England, where he appeared twice before Queen Victoria. In 1863, Stratton married another little person, Lavinia Warren. A few days after the wedding, President Lincoln received the couple at the White House. The locket, which measures ½” x 7/8”, contains 10 photos, including the couple’s wedding photo. Besides Tom and Lavinia, the photos show George Washington Morrison Nutt, the best man; Minnie Warren, Lavinia’s sister and maid of honor; and the Episcopal priest who married them. Two photos show Lavinia holding a baby. The couple never had any children, but Barnum claimed a child obtained from orphanage to be their own. He thought the baby should be a little person too. Consequently, once the baby grew too large, he would acquire another one. Sherwood died of a stroke in 1883; more than 10,000 people attended his funeral. Lavinia passed away in 1919. The brass locket is ex-m, and so are the photos, which show strong contrast.
Winning Bid $200.
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