Seeing the elephant

[1] During the 20th century the phrase faded from popularity but when historians started taking note of its recurrence in historical newspapers, journals, and literature they often summed the elephant up too quickly and categorized it as a negative experience.

The phrase may have taken on its American form in 1796 with exhibitor Jacob Crowninshield's Asian elephant display in New York City, at the corner of Beaver and Broadway.

[8] The phrase was shown to have possibly gained widespread usage by the 1830s from the book Georgia Scenes published in 1835 by regional author Augustus Baldwin Longstreet.

Unfortunately, the man they put inside was fond of his spirits, and one night he became so drunk he walked the elephant off the stage and into the music pit.

In the 3rd Century B.C., Alexander the Great's Macedonian warriors defeated the elephant-mounted army of King Porus in the Indus valley.

Considering the remarkable distance traveled by this army and its exotic exploits, it may be that "seeing the elephant" became synonymous with journeys and experiences in strange and far-off places.Another colloquial origin story many online sources cite is that of the optimistic farmer:[10][11][12] [There is an] old tale of the farmer who upon hearing that a circus had come to town excitedly set out in his wagon.

Along the way he met up with the circus parade, led by an elephant, which so terrified his horses that they bolted and pitched the wagon over on its side, scattering vegetables and eggs across the roadway.

Hopes at the beginning of the trail tended to be high and the elephant excitement directly linked to this level of anticipation.

John Clark's quote from 1852 is a perfect example of the eager emigrant: "All hands early up anxious to see the path that leads to the Elephant.

On June 3, 1852, Polly Coon wrote: Found our mess very much dejected with their nights watching and drenching but consoled themselves that they had seen some of the Elephant.

Everything being wet we concluded to tarry 2 days & dry & repair & wash.[20] Although the tone is dismal, Coon is still writing of the elephant not as a consequence but as a consolation or benefit of an unfortunate happenstance; in her case it was bad weather.

Merrill Mattes, the Great Platte River Road historian, found that bad weather was often a catalyst for pioneers to put the elephant in their journals.

They probably wreaked havoc on wagons and stock, but the pioneers likely could not help but be impressed by the unmatched forces of nature at play on the open plains.

However, sometimes the first peek was not as remarkable as later more epic appearances that finally led pioneers like Abigail Scott Duniway (1852) to acknowledge its presence, "We had seen the "Elephant" before we got there but it is the cream of the whole route, we slipped through, the Cascade Mountains between two storms.

"[23] As the miles rolled on and the pioneers continued dealing with hardships, their optimistic attitudes plummeted and the elephant was used as a kind of scapegoat for their troubles.

Lucius Fairchild, a Wisconsinite on his way to California in 1849 wrote: "that desert is truly the great Elephant of the route and God knows I never want to see it again.

The elephant was "seen" at river crossings, during bad weather, after wagons ran over family members, after deaths, and especially at a pioneer's first glimpse of one of many roadblocks in the trail ahead.

The elephant phrase was early on meant as a good thing, but because it was used in conjunction with an experience that did not turn out as most hoped, the term evolved into a slightly more negative connotation after the Overland Trail period was over.

The ambiguity of the colloquial phrase "seeing the elephant" is likely what led to it being used as a euphemism or slang for western saloons and brothels throughout the end of the nineteenth century.

A picture of a red light district in 1890s Colorado has the caption: "The Row, Cripple Creek: a part of town where everybody goes to see the elephant.

In his book about pleasure resorts, Jon Sterngrass writes that the popularity of the phrase came from Coney Island which used the elephant as a mascot throughout the Gilded Age.

Originally put on in New York in 1848, a popular burlesque about the Gold Rush called Seeing the Elephant made it to San Francisco for a performance in the summer of 1850.

[4][28] James McMurtry's song "See the Elephant" from his 2005 album "Childish Things" uses the phrase as a Virginia teenager's chance to go to Richmond for some adult experience before heading off to military service.

[29] The museum director said "These guys were excited and expecting glory, but when they got to battle they found chaos and mayhem, and they weren't too anxious to 'see the elephant' again.