Family: Henry A. Kerner / Harriet Davenport (F18043373)

m. 19 Nov 1892


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  • Henry A. KernerFather | Male
    Henry A. Kerner

    Born  Abt. 1872  Montgomery County, Iowa, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Died  29 Nov 1906  City Hospital, St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Buried  3 Dec 1906  St. Peter's Cemetery, St. Louis City, Missouri, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Married  19 Nov 1892  St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA Find all individuals with events at this location
    Father  Adolph Kerner | F18043403 Group Sheet 
    Mother  Elizabeth Kueff | F18043403 Group Sheet 

    Harriet DavenportMother | Female
    Harriet Davenport

    Born  28 Feb 1853  Jefferson County, Kentucky, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Died  11 Jun 1939  Bridgeport, Lawrence County, Illinois, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Buried  13 Jun 1939  Bridgeport Cemetery, Bridgeport, Lawrence County, Illinois, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Other Spouse  Unknown | F18043374 
    Married    Did not marry. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Other Spouse  Thomas Riley Hunley | F18043361 
    Married  29 May 1875  Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Other Spouse  Joseph Williams | F18043371 
    Married  29 Apr 1882  Kansas, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Other Spouse  Thomas Yeager | F18043372 
    Married  16 Feb 1891  Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Father  Benjamin F. Davenport | F5776 Group Sheet 
    Mother  Margaret Abel | F5776 Group Sheet 

  • Notes 
    • Hattie Davenport & Henry Kerner evidently met while both were working at a shoe factory in St. Louis, MO. During many summers beginning in the 1890s, Hattie and Henry followed the carnival circuit. They performed, respectively, as a snake charmer & strong man on tour with the Barkoot Show, Thornton's Great Railroad Show, and Blue Grass Show.

    • One example of showmanship in early carnivals:

      http://www.archive.org/stream/newsecondhandban00unit/newsecondhandban00unit_djvu.txt

      "SNAKE CHARMER. One banner 10 ft. wide and 10 ft. high. Lettered across the top: 'Mile De Lano, Snake Charmer.' This painting represents Miss De Lano on a stage, with plenty of rich colored snakes wound around her. The background represents a floral design, and at each side of the stage are red portieres, draped in rich colors. She is attired in dress knee length. It is a very rich appearing banner."

    • An old timer's explanation of the public appeal at the end of the nineteenth century of traveling shows:

      Steve Goodson, "Public Entertainment in Atlanta, 1880-1930 (Athens, GA: Univ. of Georgia Press, 2007), Ch. II "Amusements":

      "In 1948 the Atlanta Historical Bulletin published reminiscences by Walter McElreath, lawyer, politician, and founder of the Atlanta Historical Society, remembered Atlanta as he had first encountered it in the closing decades of the nineteenth century. He fondly recalled the time when Atlanta's churches, retailers, and grocery stores, as well as the residences of its leading citizens, were all clustered near the center of what was then a small and compact city. Life seemed to move at a slower, horse-drawn pace; everybody was at home and had nowhere to go. Any queer or amusing character was in those days and object of interest which [today] would pass practically unnoticed.' . . ."