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A One-Name Study for the BARNUM/BARNHAM Surname

Notes for Caroline Cornelia BARNUM

Caroline Cornelia Barnum, the first child of Phineas Taylor and Charity (Hallett) Barnum, was born May 27, 1833. She was very close to her father and, as she grew older, often took her mother's place as Barnum's traveling companion. Daughter and father shared the same sense of humor. Caroline once wore a heavy veil as a decoy to steer crowds away from opera singer Jenny Lind on her American tour in 1850, and posed as Tom Thumb's mother, carrying him in her arms. In 1852, Caroline married David W. Thompson, a Bridgeport businessman. Their son, Phineas Taylor Barnum Thompson, was born in 1865 and died three years later. A daughter, Frances, was born in 1853 and died in 1939. Caroline Barnum Thompson died in 1911 from a brain concussion received in a fall.

The New York Times, June 7, 1911. Will of Barnum's Daughter. Mrs. C. C. Thompson Left an Estate Valued at More Than $1,000,000.
Bridgeport, Conn., June 6.—Under the terms of the will of Mrs. Caroline C. Thompson of this city and New York, daughter of the late P. T. Barnum, an estate estimated at over a million dollars is disposed of.
To her husband is given an annuity of $6,000 and a life interest in the New York residence. Mrs. Frances Leigh, a daughter, is made residuary legatee.
There is a gift of $5,000 to provide for a free bed in the Bridgeport Hospital for the exclusive use of colored residents of the city. Several local institutions are given $1.000 each, and $2,000 goes to the Church of the Heavenly Rest, New York City.

The New York Times, May 21, 1911, p. 11 - Death Notice: Caroline C. Thompson died at Bridgeport, Connecticut on 5/10/1911.

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