Mose Smith was billed as
“The Greatest Tattooed Man in the World”
born: June 21, 1891 died: November 6, 1948
through the Public Library of Anniston-Calhoun County.
Mose was a tattooed man and later a calliope player on the following shows:
1915 Famous Robinson Shows
1916-1918 John Robinson Circus
John Robinson Ten Big Shows Souvenir Route Season 1916
John Robinson Ten Big Shows Souvenir Route 93rd Year Season 1917
1920 Ringling Bros, Barnum & Baily Circus
1925 Miller Brothers’ 101 Ranch Real Wild West and Great far East Shows
Miller Brothers 101 Ranch Real Wild West and Great Far East Official Season’s Route Season 1925
1931-1932 Rubin & Cherry Model Show
In July of 1925, he married Gertrude “Gertie” Pickel, a dancer with whom he performed in Doc Oyler’s Sideshow within the Miller Brothers’ 101 Ranch Real Wild West and Great far East Shows.
“Mose is some tattooer, and is getting by with it.” – The Mitchell Commercial, Nov 25, 1915.
As was the case with many tattooed men, he also practiced the art himself. By 1920, he had worked in San Francisco’s Barbary Coast and in the Bowery district in New York City. By 1928, Mose was operating his own studio in Chicago, located in an arcade at 534 S. State St. He spoke in an interview of using India stick ink mixed with Listerine, since prohibition had made alcohol unavailable. Here are several examples of his work:
In the 1930’s and into the 40’s, he was the owner and operator of a Monster and Snake show. The Billboard Magazine from October 1942 lists him as appearing with Oscar Bloom’s Gold Medal Shows in Alabama. He appeared with J.F. Sparks Shows in 1944, then back to the Gold Medal Shows for the 1945 and 1946 seasons. On June 14, 1947 his “Big Snake” attraction is named as part of John R. Quinn’s World of Pleasure Shows touring Michigan at the time.
Mose was my Great Grand Uncle (my great-grandfather’s brother), and my dad remembers Mose coming to Terre Haute with an orangutan and a wagon full of snakes. The children in the neighborhood would gather to watch him feed them.
I am always seeking any and all available information on Mose to further expand this resource about his career as a tattooed man, so that he will not be forgotten.
In addition to my family, the following people and organizations have helped me so far, and my gratitude knows no bounds:
Fred Dahlinger (Circus World Museum)
Chuck Eldridge (Tattoo Archive)
Darlene (101 Ranch Old Timers)
Carmen Forquer (Tattoo historian and Great Grand Niece of Bert Grimm)
Lance Johnson Studio (for permission to use the Russel Bros. photo)
Highland Lawn Cemetery, Terre Haute, IN
The Vigo County Public Library, In Terre Haute, IN
The Public Library of Anniston-Calhoun County, Anniston, AL
Sam Stamper postcards from the Tattoo Photograph Collection, #064-03-01, Special Collections, Providence Public Library.