George Wombwell , circus director in United Kingdom Born 1777-12-24 in United Kingdom dead 1850 in United Kingdom . George Wombwell was born in Wendon Lofts, Essex in 24th December 1777. Around 1800 he moved to London and in 1804 became a shoemaker in Soho. However, when a ship from South America brought two boas to London docks, he bought them for £75 and began to exhibit them in taverns. He soon made a good profit. Wombwell began to buy exotic animals from ships that came from Africa, Australia and South America, and collected a whole menagerie and put them on display in Soho. In 1810 he founded the Wombwell's Travelling Menagerie and began to tour the fairs of Britain. By 1839 it totaled fifteen wagons. George Wombwell died in 1850 and was buried in Highgate Cemetery, under a statue of his lion Nero and quite near to Karl Marx. George Wombwells niece Emma married James Bostock.
