Matthew Scott

author

Matthew Scott

b. 1834

Best known as the devoted keeper of Jumbo, the famous elephant of the London Zoo and P. T. Barnum's circus, this 19th-century animal trainer left behind a lively firsthand memoir. His story offers a rare, personal look at Victorian zoo life, show business, and the bond between a man and an animal who became world-famous.

1 Audiobook

Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper; Also Jumbo's Biography, by the same Author

Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper; Also Jumbo's Biography, by the same Author

by Matthew Scott

About the author

Born in 1834, Matthew Scott is remembered chiefly through Autobiography of Matthew Scott, Jumbo's Keeper, a memoir that recounts his years caring for Jumbo, the elephant whose fame stretched from London to the United States. The book presents Scott not as a distant celebrity, but as a practical working man whose daily life became tied to one of the best-known animals of the era.

Scott worked closely with Jumbo during the elephant's time at the Zoological Society of London's gardens and remained associated with him when Jumbo was sold to P. T. Barnum. That connection made Scott part of a much larger public story, because Jumbo's transfer caused intense attention and controversy on both sides of the Atlantic.

What makes Scott interesting today is the firsthand point of view he brings. His memoir captures the routines of animal care, the spectacle surrounding famous exhibits, and the emotional loyalty he felt toward Jumbo, giving modern readers a vivid window into Victorian popular culture and the world of animal exhibition.