Curious tale of the elephant in a Totnes garden
Local history has a reputation for being quirky and unpredictable.
But, when an Irishman asked for information on an elephant he remembered being kept in a garden in Totnes, it was by far the most unusual request that the Totnes Image Bank had received.
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Used to dealing more with family trees than zoology, the Image Bank took on the challenge and discovered a fascinating photo. An image from 1931 of a magnificent elephant waving her trunk in the air while simultaneously lifting a front leg.
These acrobatics hint at a circus theme and the image bank's historians discovered that the elephant had been kept in the back garden of Seymour Lodge, while a circus took a break between trips on the road.
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With the garden looking rather worst for wear, you cannot help but ponder how the circus managed to persuade someone to take on such a large animal.
Chapman's Circus stopped in Totnes in June 1931. Their brief visit clearly made a lasting impression on the Irishman who was amazed to see the image.
Image Bank manager Barrington Weekes said: "He was delighted that we could come up with the answer.
"We get this sort of puzzle all the time and quite often can find a clue in our archives."
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