Building a Showman's Caravan Part 1

PART 1
The Beginning of something GREAT!

This past year has been filled with change. And with change comes NEW ideas and also inspiration. Everything happens for a reason and this past summer of 2010 was an interesting turning point in my life.

I had booked my World of Wonders at Upper Canada Village and found that the nostalgia of working at a Historical Park got me thinking about my show from the past, Prof. Crookshank's Traveling Medicine Show.

Jess and I working the World of Wonders at Upper Canada Village

I have worked the adult sector of entertainment for the past 18 years, and when I saw that there was a hole in the industry for good 'Ol fashioned Vaudeville Entertainment... I started to think about bringing back my Medicine Show.

My next big gig was at the Ottawa Super Ex, and they had given me the opportunity to set up, not only my World of Wonders, but also a Museum about my grandfather's past as a Carnival owner and Showman. This got me thinking even more about the past and my work as a purveyor of Victorian entertainments. I worked daily at the Fair, enjoying the the daily influx of people coming to witness our Freakshow and Historical Displays.

Crowds enjoying the Historical Artifacts at the Ottawa Super Ex

During our run at the Ottawa Super Ex, there was a group of people called 'The Pioneer Gathering' , that had set up a 19th Century Pioneer Camp on the grounds.

They ate, slept and lived the life of pioneers for the 11 days we were open.

While working daily at the Super Ex, on my breaks I would walk around and I stumbled upon this great group of people and began to chat about life back in the 19th Century. The more we talked, the more I could see we had in common. I found these people very down to earth and honestly a good time to hang out with. Now, as I have said, everything happens for a reason, and the timing of meeting these great pioneer re-enactors, started me on a path of wanting to bring back my Medicine Show and do it on a larger scale.

The person that I bonded with the most was a man named Ward Wright. Ward was the silver back of his group and had many old time skills that  have been forgotten. Ward was and is a renaissance man. (not the type that dresses up in foofy costumes and does Ren Faires) His knowledge of old world skills is fascinating and the more we talked, the more we saw that we had something in common and respected each others abilities.

Nikolai Diablo (me) and Ward Wright with his daughter

I told Ward about my Traveling Medicine Show idea and he started talking to me about where we might be able to find the wheels for the base to building a Showman's Caravan. This is something I had always wanted for the show, but never had the carpentry background to do. Ward on the other hand, had not only the background, but the drive for such a huge project.

And so, we set out to find the base for the Showman's Caravan. And after a month of searching... Ward found a set of carriage wheels attached to a base for driving, that was in immaculate condition. The farmer he had talked to, had kept the wagon base and wheels in his barn for years and they were almost like new.

Proud owner of a set of wagon wheels with chassy, circa 1880

The Wagon wheels were over 120 years old and I knew I had to make this purchase. This decision was the start of a great adventure. as Ward and I embarked on building a Full-Sized Showman's Caravan.

Cleaning off 100 years of dirt.

It started with a couple of simple sketch's that were the bases for the project.

Sketch made a month before the purchase of the wagon

 I took a bulk of the money I had made doing Fort Fright in October, and put it towards the building of the caravan. Jess and her father also pitched in to help bring the caravan to life, using their skills to enhance the building process.

Jess and I painting the wagon wheels

Painting wheel rims

Ward painting under carriage of wagon

At first it seemed like a big gamble with my money, but as time wore on over the first couple of weeks, I could see that this was going to be a great investment. Ward worked his magic and began to build from the ground up a 19th Century Showman's Caravan... without any blue prints.

Ward working on wood supports

I have never seen anyone so confident in wood working. Ward innately knew exactly where to start and worked meticulously daily with me at making this dream come to life.

Ward working on caravan base

To be continued in Part 2