Alpheus George Barnes Stonehouse

Alpheus George Barnes Stonehouse Sr. (September 1, 1862 – July 25, 1931) was the owner of the Al G. Barnes Circus

Al G. Barnes
Born	Alpheus George Barnes Stonehouse Sr. (1862-09-01)September 1, 1862 Lobo, Ontario, Canada
Died	July 25, 1931(1931-07-25) (aged 68) Indio, California, US
Known for	Al G. Barnes Circus
Spouse(s)	Dollie Arminta Barlow Sarah Jane Hartigan Margaret Goldsboro
Children	3
Relatives	Lydia Stonehouse Bishop, sister

Biography

Barnes was born on September 1, 1862, in Lobo, Ontario, Canada, to Thomas S. Stonehouse (1826-1882) and Sarah Barnes (1825-1883).[1] He then married Dollie Arminta Barlow and she filed for divorce in 1916.[1][2]

Babe Eckhart started what she believed was a relationship with him. She played the calliope in his circus. When he refused to marry her, she shot herself just outside his private railroad car in Idaho in 1919.[3]

In 1922 his divorce from Dollie Arminta was granted. He then married Sarah Jane Hartigan and they had three children before they divorced. He lastly married Margaret Goldsboro.[3]

In January 1929, he sold his circus to the American Circus Corporation.[1]

He died on July 25, 1931, in Indio, California. He had been ill for most of the past year with pneumonia.[1][4][5]

References

1. "Al G. Barnes Dies". White Tops Circus Magazine. September 1, 1931. Retrieved 2008-07-22. The well-known circus owner of the Pacific coast, Al G. Barnes, died July 25, at his ranch in Indio, California. He was 68 years of age. He had been ill for most of his last year, pneumonia and complications being given as the cause. His right name was Alpheus George Barnes Stonehouse. He was born in Lobo, Ontario, Canada, September 1, 1862.
2. "Mrs. Al G. Barnes". Associated Press in The New York Times. May 22, 1937. Retrieved 2008-07-22. Mrs. Dollie Arminta Barnes, widow of Al G. Barnes, circus owner, died here on Wednesday at the age of ...
3. "Barnes City Zoo". Westland. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
4. "The Story of a Big-Top Circus Man; Al G. Barnes, Master Showman. By Dave Robeson, as told by Al G. Barnes". The New York Times. August 11, 1935. Retrieved 2008-07-22. Al G. Barnes, proprietor and manager of the famous circus that bore his name, who through many years gave pleasure and entertainment to numberless thousands all over this country, died a year or so ago at the date ranch of Dave Robeson in Indio, near the southeastern border of California.
5. "Died". Time. August 3, 1931. Retrieved 2008-07-22. Alpheus George Barnes Stonehouse (Al G. Barnes), 68, circusman, founder and longtime owner of Barnes's Circus; after a lingering illness; in Indio, California.