Hugo museum to capture thrill of the circus
ENTERTAINMENTHUGO SERVES AS WINTER HOME TO TRAVELING ACTS

HUGO — As a reward for serving as safety patrol, the suburban Chicago elementary school treated students to a Shrine Circus in the city.

The biggest cats Jim Royal had been around prior to that time were addressed with "here, kitty, kitty.”

That day, he was nearly face-to-face with lions.

Shortly thereafter, he was scanning the shelves of the local library.

"A book called ‘The Circus Kings’ by Henry Ringling North caught my eye,” he said of the experience that occurred about 1960. "I got that book down, read it, and was hooked.”

In 1966, Royal graduated from high school on a Thursday and by Saturday morning was in Wisconsin working with a circus.

Today, Royal is general manager of Kelly Miller Circus, one of three circuses that make their winter home in Hugo.

Because Hugo has been the off-season home of circuses for more than 65 years, an effort is under way to create the Circus City Museum and Park.

Royal is on the board of directors of a group in the process of buying property that includes a house. They have the money available but are waiting for 501(c)(3) approval. Once they receive that, they will begin fundraising for renovation of the house, which will serve as a museum and a home for artists in residence focusing on circus themes.

Royal knows what it’s like on the road. For example, Kelly Miller Circus will start its season with 65 people and about 33 vehicles traveling to south Texas in February. Then they’ll work north through Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri and go up to Massachusetts and then swing toward Chicago before heading back south and finishing up just before Halloween. Last year, they drew about a quarter of a million people, up from about 190,000 the previous year.

Royal knows the circus road, and he knows Hugo as his home.

He’s also excited about sharing all of that through the museum.

I asked Royal to give me an example of the feeling he gets from bringing the circus to people.

Last season, the circus was in Pennsylvania.

It serves as a fundraiser for organizations, and on this particular day, it was working for a home for senior citizens.

"We did two shows, and they had all of the residents coming to the show,” he said. "We were right by the building, and we cleared things out so they were literally coming in beds; some of them in wheelchairs and watching that show and having such a great time. In talking with the staff, they said they hadn’t been this happy in years.”

Hugo is a good place for a circus to winter because it provides a convenient starting point, he said. If the circus wants to go north, south, east or west, that can be done.

"The weather generally is fairly mild here,” he said. "Today is a beautiful day. It’s like spring out there. So the animals are out enjoying the weather, and it gives us a chance to work on equipment.”

Plus, Hugo as a city has been very welcoming, Royal said.

"We’re made to feel very much a part of the community,” he said.

Royal said the group planning the museum is in the process of buying a house and an adjacent lot opposite the library.

As for the house, the ground floor will be converted to a museum.

The upstairs will be a studio where organizers hope to have artists who could create things regarding the circus.

Plans are to frequently refresh the exhibits. The museum also will be a research center for circus history in Hugo.

The adjoining lot is going to be a park in which is planned a fountain with an elephant squirting water and a pool. Organizers also hope to include topiaries with circus animals, a play area and an outdoor structure where people can hold events and picnics.

For Royal, it’s just another way of carrying on a love for the circus that began as a student more than 45 years ago.

"The circus never gets old,” he said. "That sense of delight the circus brings never gets old.”

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