William H. Woodcock
William Woodcock was born in May 19th, 1904. In 1910, 6-year-old William watched eight elephants dressed in green at the John Robinson Show, and at 16 he ran away with the circus.
Woodcock started his career with elephants under Frank "Cheerful" Gardner with the Al G. Barnes Circus in 1921.
He became one of the foremost authority on elephants in America.
When Sarah Orton, of Ortonsville, Iowa, became his bride, he married into a family that had been in the circus since Great Lakes sailor Grandpa Hiram Orton started one in 1854.
William Woodcock died 20 December 1963.
