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P. T. Barnum Accomplishments

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“The noblest art is that of making others happy” (Barnum). Phineas Taylor Barnum, otherwise known as P. T. Barnum, had strong determination and a goal throughout his life to make people happy with his work and make them understand how some things worked. He had hope to delight their lives and leave a positive impact on them. With his work, he wanted to demonstrate the differences in people's lives. Someone might look different, sound different or act different, so he showcased what they could do, he showed the public how everyone is different. P. T. Barnum was born on July 5, 1810. He was known throughout his life as many different names including: Tale when he was a baby, Taylor as he got older, and P. T. Barnum or just Barnum when he was …show more content…

When Barnum was fifteen, his father died from illness, he left many unpaid bills, which left Barnum and the rest of his family to attempt to pay for them by themselves. The ended up going broke and he had to get many different jobs to attempt to pay off dept (16). This was one of his first life lessons. Another major person in his life was his grandfather, also known to the town as "Uncle Phin." He was the father to Barnum's mother. Phin was known as the town prankster. The biggest prank he pulled on Barnum would stick with him for most of his life and it would be his first introduction to the prank world. Phin gave Barnum a piece of island when he was two. He grew up hearing about this island and imagined it to be full of beautiful green trees, he always thought he would grow up to be rich living on that piece of land, called Ivy Island. He found out when he was older that it was just a small, snake infested, skinny branched piece of land. This joke was thought to turn Barnum into a hard worker and strip his boyhood dreams, but all it did was turn him into a practical joker himself. As he got older, Barnum brought new family members into his life. When he was nineteen years old, he met the lovely Charity Hallet. They met while she was

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