[Circus fonts emulate the 19th century Western circus posters. They are heavily influenced by wood type and Victorian era signage. One of the original nineteenth century designs is P.T. Barnum, cut at Barnhart Brothers & Spindler in Chicago about 1880, and passed on via American Type Founders. Bitstream's P.T. Barnum is a digital descendant of that typeface. For another example, check Dave West's PL Barnum Block (1960).]
