1860 — Josiah Cornelius Quincy Moore, an African bush elephant, is born on December 25 in Sudan to Esther (née Wilson) and William Moore. As a calf, Josiah dreams of one day becoming a circus star or a civil engineer.
1862 — Captured and brought to Europe. Josiah is renamed “Jumbo” after circus officials discover another African bush elephant named Josiah is already working in the industry. Contrary to the name, neither elephant had pubic hair.
1882 — Jumbo is purchased by P. T. Barnum for three buttons, two Q-tips, a peanut, and a little jig – the equivalent of roughly $1.6 million in today’s economy.
1882–1885 — Jumbo tours North America with Barnum & Bailey Circus and becomes an international celebrity. He is best known for his acclaimed act, The Infant Juggling Spectacular, which historians now agree was “probably unsafe.”
1885 — On September 15th, Jumbo is killed in an accident on the Green Line. The tragedy prompted MBTA officials to implement important safety measures, including painted yellow warning strips.
1889 — Tufts University adopts Jumbo as its mascot despite the elephant never paying tuition or completing a single distribution requirement. University officials also commission an anatomically correct Jumbo costume, which is immediately vetoed and reportedly remains secured within the Tisch Library vault.
1975 — On April 14th, a fire destroys Jumbo’s preserved hide. Miraculously, part of his tail survives and is stored in a peanut butter jar featuring a pre-existing and suspiciously sized hole.
2002 — Jumbo 2.0 is unveiled, the upgraded mascot model we all know and love.
