The Greatest Little Show on Earth: A Circus Unlike Any Other Comes to Southwick
In the summer of 1946, Southwick, Massachusetts, became an unlikely gathering place for circus dreamers and craftsmen. The Western Massachusetts and Northern Connecticut Circus Fans Association, along with the Circus Model Builders and Owners Association, held their annual meeting at Litch’s Corner (today's 215 Feeding Hills Road). Their host, Elmer D. Litch, was not only a member of a local Chamber of Commerce but had once served as president of the Model Builders Association. His property provided the perfect stage for what was to follow. (Litch owned a moving and trucking business in Springfield, Massachusetts. His company had done work for visiting circuses.)
Inspired by the success of the meeting, the two organizations resolved to stage a three-day public exhibition the following year. And so, in 1947, the quiet town of Southwick came alive with the sights, sounds, and flavors of the circus. Beneath billowing fireproof canvas tents, visitors found themselves in a miniature world of marvels: true-to-scale circus models, live clowns, “Indians” in full regalia, Shetland pony rides for the children, and the ceaseless music of a full-size calliope machine echoing through the grounds. Refreshment stands offered the same treats one might expect beneath the big top.
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| Elmer D. Litch |
The models themselves were astonishing works of craftsmanship. Built of wood, metal, and plaster—pine, whiteboard, and southern baywood shaped with patient care—they re-created the vast and varied life of the traveling circus. Every detail was accounted for: cages filled with animals, baggage wagons piled high with tent poles and canvas, seats ready to be set, and even freshly laundered towels strung between wagons to dry in the sun. There was a cookhouse, a platform for daring aerialists high above the ring, and an entire Main Street Circus Parade rendered at a one-inch scale.
That parade stretched an extraordinary 120 feet, the largest of its kind in the world at the time. It began with a cowgirl on horseback carrying the American flag, followed by a glittering bandwagon pulled by ten horses—an exact replica of the “Two Hemispheres Wagon” that Barnum & Bailey* had built for their 1901 European tour at the staggering cost of $40,000.
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| Barnum & Bailey's Two Hemispheres Wagon |
Model builders came from across New England, as well as New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, to showcase their work. Although never intended for sale, the hand-carved displays were collectively valued at more than $10,000—a fortune in its day, and a testament to the devotion of those who created them.
For two years, Southwick hosted this remarkable celebration of circus lore and craftsmanship, drawing visitors eager to see both the whimsy and the precision of the miniature big top. But, in 1949, the popular event was moved to the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield, Massachusetts.
For Southwick, though, those two postwar summers at Litch’s Corner left a lasting memory: a time when a small community played host to the wonder and magic of the circus. The joy of those gatherings was especially poignant in the shadow of the Hartford Circus Fire of 1944, which claimed 167 lives in neighboring Connecticut, and ushered in sweeping safety regulations. So strict were the new rules in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey was forced to cancel its Springfield performance in 1947, forever changing the circus landscape in the Baystate. Yet Southwick found a way to keep the spirit of celebration alive. In 1948, the Southwick Fireman's Association launched the annual Southwick Fireman’s Carnival, ensuring that laughter, music, and the thrill of summer spectacle remained part of local tradition.
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Edited Out/Author’s Additional Research Notes
Ringling Brothers purchased Barnum & Bailey in 1907, but operated separately until 1919, when wartime labor shortages and travel logistics forced them to merge into one. The new company was called Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Combined Shows.
Elmer D. Litch was a well-known businessman whose ventures spanned trucking, real estate, and the circus world. His Litch Trucking Company carried the slogan “The World Moves and so Does Litch.” At its height, the business was large enough to draw both attention and controversy. At one point, it was sued by a labor group for failing to hire union workers. Litch himself was also elected president of the Motor Carriers Association of Western Massachusetts in 1946.The company suffered a series of devastating setbacks. In 1961, a warehouse Litch leased in Springfield went up in flames. The two-story building was consumed in a spectacular blaze that drew hundreds of onlookers; two juveniles were later arrested for arson. Another fire struck in 1968, when Elmer D. Litch, Inc. burned from a ground-level office to a second-story storage area. The fire destroyed all company records along with three trucks and heavily damaged two more.
Financial troubles soon followed. In 1969, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts placed a tax lien on the company for unpaid withholding taxes from 1967 through 1969, totaling $3,476.92. A year later, the IRS added its own lien of $8,952.32 and Elmer retired.
Litch’s business also found itself in unexpected legal battles. He once sued the publisher of a telephone directory for a misprint that mistakenly sent potential customers to a competitor.
Circus life was always close to Litch’s interests. Following the tragic Hartford Circus Fire of July 6, 1944—which killed at least 167 people and injured more than 700—the state of Massachusetts imposed strict safety regulations on traveling shows. Ringling Bros. was forced to cancel its Springfield circus in 1947 after being unable to meet requirements that included 40 feet of exit space per hundred attendees. Litch, whose trucking company transported equipment for visiting circuses, tried unsuccessfully to reason with state officials.
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| Hartford Circus Fire - 1944 |
Litch’s Corner itself became a local landmark. Located at the intersection of Springfield Road (now Feeding Hills Road), Foster Road, and North Longyard Road, it once hosted elephants in 1939 and later became the site of Southwick’s famed circus model exhibitions in the late 1940s. The corner eventually passed into new hands, becoming known as Camen Corners—a real estate holding tied to Pioneer Dairy. (The name “Camen” came from the initials of Charles Nutter’s family: Charles, Anne, Mabel, Elbert, and Nutter.)
Beyond business, Litch made cultural contributions. In 1963, he donated an 82-year-old Hallett Davis piano to a local museum. His remarkable circus collection, amassed over a lifetime, was willed to the Circus Hall of Fame in Sarasota, Florida—today known as the Circus Ring of Fame®, modeled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Sarasota, winter home of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and many others, was a fitting resting place for his legacy.
Elmer D. Litch was born on December 21, 1890. He died at Noble Hospital on May 10, 1972; his wife passed away later the same year. The following year, in 1973, Camen Realty purchased his property.