The Greatest Show on Earth brought smiles to the faces of millions of people over the
last century, but as the curtains closed, one of the Ringling Brothers lost it all.
Hi everyone Ken here, welcome to "ThisHouse"!!
Today we are heading down to Sarasota, Florida to explore the Ca’ D’Zan, the palatial
estate of John Ringling.
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In 1866, John Ringling was born into a large, working-class family on a farm in Iowa.
Not having many options for employment other than farming, his brothers had to get creative
to earn an income.
They began practicing circus tricks with the hopes of hitting the road to go on tour.
In 1870, when John was just 14, The Ringling Brothers performed their first show, charging
just 1 penny per attendee.
The show was a hit, and by 1889, the Ringling Brothers were traveling across the United
States, chartering trains to carry circus performers, elephants, and props from city
to city.
As the years went by, their performances became increasingly popular, drawing crowds by the
thousands.
The brothers rapid rise in showbiz made them very rich and in 1907, they decided to purchase
their main competition, Barnum and Bailey’s Greatest Show on Earth.
As the older brothers started to pass away, John became the leader of the Circus, running
both shows independently from each other, creating the illusion of two competing circuses.
This strategy created even more wealth for John, but just as things were looking up,
the Spanish Flu tore through the United States and many people stayed home instead of attending
shows.
John had worked his entire life to build his circus empire and he did not want to see his
wealth whipped out.
He began diversifying his funds by purchasing stocks in railroads and oil companies.
He then purchased large tracts of land in Florida along with farms and oil fields.
Had it not been for his foresight to diversify, he might have ended up broke, but instead,
by 1920 his wealth skyrocketed as his investments earned him a net worth of 50 million dollars,
the modern equivalent of roughly 755 million dollars.
John and his wife Mable purchased a winter home in Sarasota, Florida, but quickly decided
that it should be grander.
After vacationing there for a few years, they decided to have it torn down.
In 1924, the couple hired architect Dwight James Baum to design for them a 36,000 square
foot mansion to take the place of their former winter home.
Over the years, John and Mable had spent time exploring Europe and had fallen in love with
Venice, Italy.
Mable collected photos and drawings of her favorite buildings which she gave to the architect,
instructing him to design a house based on her favorite venetian sites.
The resulting mansion became a distinctly American mix of European styles ranging from
the Palazzo style to Venetian Gothic with gothic tracery used throughout.
The brick and concrete mansion was clad in stucco and decorated further with glazed tiles.
Mable reportedly became so involved in the project that she personally oversaw the mixing
of pigments to ensure that the colors of the various glazed tiles would be exactly to her
liking.
To top off the extravagant palace, 16th century Spanish roof tiles were imported and installed.
These could be looked out over from the 5-story tower rising 82 feet from the ground.
John was known to bring his guests up the tower to show off his massive land holdings
which stretched inland for nearly as far as the eye could see.
Entering the home, we arrive in the foyer where our sight line continues through pointed
arches towards the court.
The ceiling of the court soars 3 stories overhead, capped off by a skylight set in the hand stenciled
coffered ceiling.
Suspended from the center beam, is a chandelier from the former Waldorf Astoria hotel in New
York City.
John and Mable collected furniture and antiques from Gilded Age mansions as they were being
torn down.
Many of the pieces they used to furnish their home one belonged to barons of industry, all
of which they acquired at bargain rates by attending estate auctions.
To the side of the Court is the Ballroom.
The extravagant ceiling boasts 26 inlaid canvas paintings created by famed artist Willy Pogany.
Each painting depicts a traditional dance from a different culture, though some are
based more on stories and stereotypes rather than actual cultural dances.
Continuing back towards the front of the house, we will see the reception room hidden behind
a screened off arcade.
Now we will cut back through the foyer, making our way towards the other side of the court
to find the dining room.
The dining room was finished out with floor to ceiling wood paneling with each section
being interrupted by decorative relief work below the frieze.
Centered above the dining room table, the ceiling was anchored on an 8 pointed star
extending outward to create a fractal, coffered ceiling upon which colorful hand stenciling
added an additional layer of intricacy.
Near this room was the pantry where a custom silver sink provided a safe place to wash
the families collection of fine silverware and China.
We can take the passage to the side to arrive in the breakfast room with black and white
checkered floors pointing towards an ocean view.
We can now circle back around to find the grand marble staircase sweeping around a corner
and out of view.
Upstairs we will find several guest bedrooms, each decorated with antique furniture.
We will even find full bathrooms, some of which would have been considered exceedingly
modern for the time, while others would have been viewed as more classically styled, such
as Mable’s dressing room and bathroom which was complete with built in mirrored wardrobes.
We will continue to view the estate while we uncover the next portion of the Ringling
story.
In 1929, After enjoying only 3 short years in their dream house, Mable passed away.
In that same year, John aimed to further his business empire by purchasing several other
large circuses, essentially establishing a monopoly on circuses in the United States.
But to accomplish this, he had to borrow the modern equivalent of nearly 30 million dollars
which he was unable to pay back as the Great Depression ravaged the economy.
In order to attain the loan, John had to put up half of his circus stocks as collateral,
and when he defaulted, financiers demanded he begin the process of signing over his assets.
By 1933, all that was left to John’s name was his mansion and art collection.
Around this time, his health began to fail and he never was able to dig himself out of
crushing debt.
In 1936 he passed away with only 311 dollars to his name, the modern equivalent of about
7,000 dollars.
In his will, he left Ca d’Zan and his art collection to the state of Florida to be used
as a museum, but there was no money to maintain it.
He had passed away during the height of the Great Depression and left a mansion which
required the equivalent of 10s of thousands of dollars in monthly maintenance, the state
simply could not afford its upkeep nor were there any bids from citizens to purchase it.
For the better part of a decade, it sat abandoned without any climate control, slowly deteriorating
as the humidity built up between its walls and winds battered the delicate façade with
each passing hurricane.
By 1946, the economy had recovered and there was now money to be spent on maintaining the
mansion as the state was able to open it to the public as an art museum.
Though it seemed like the mansion would be lost, efforts were made to restore it and
continue its maintenance throughout the years.
Today, it is open to the public where guests can explore the palatial estate, learn about
circus history, and appreciate fine art and antiques.
Which room was your favorite?
Let me know down below in the comments section.
And while you’re there.
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