Monument to Norma Jean, a circus elephant who died from a lightning strike (8 photos)

In July 1972, the Clark and Walters Circus was touring the Midwest and stopped in the quiet Mississippi River town of Oquoka.





The circus industry was in decline, and the troupe sold almost everything except its star, the Asian elephant Norma Jean.



That night, a thunderstorm broke out. To prevent the elephant from running away (as had happened before), she was chained to a tree. When Possum Red, the trainer, went to check on her, lightning struck the tree. The shock wave threw the man 10 meters away, and when he came to, he saw Norma Jean's 6.5-ton body, lifeless, lying on the ground.





The circus was unable to transport the giant carcass – Norma Jean was buried where she died. They dug a 4-meter grave in a city park and lowered her into it with the help of a tractor. The insurance did not cover the loss, and without its star, the Clark and Walters circus closed within a year.

A Memory Forged by Kindness



Years passed, and local pharmacist Wade Malone, a great animal lover, decided to immortalize Norma Jeane's memory. First, he fenced her grave with a wooden fence with a homemade plaque, and then raised money for a real monument, which consisted of a stone wall with the elephant's story, a display case with circus posters and photographs, and a life-size bronze statue of an elephant.



Now this touching memorial reminds us that even in the world of traveling circuses and forgotten towns, there is room for love and sorrow.