[WilliamG]

in reply to: Flying Trapeze #5499

Henry Burton’s National Circus played Castlemaine on 22 February 1871, so it’s possible that John Wieland killed himself on around that date. Surviving area newspapers started reporting the death on 1 April 1871.

[WilliamG]

in reply to: Flying Trapeze #5498

The news item appeared in the Adelaide Observer on 1 April 1871.
“A Sorrowful Ending. – There will be general regret at hearing that Wieland, one of the clowns in Mr. Burton’s travelling circus, who was well known in Adelaide, committed suicide at Castlemaine after having quarrelled with the proprietor of the circus and been discharged.”

I found a death record in Ancestry.com in the Death Index for Australia. It indicates that John B. Wieland was about 30 at the time of his death. Victoria registration #571.

[WilliamG]

in reply to: Flying Trapeze #5496

Regarding the Wieland Family Troupe: I just discovered that John B. Wieland died (suicide) in March 1871, aged about 30, in Castlemaine, Victoria, after an argument with Henry Burton, his employer. It appears that other family members continued working with Burton after that.

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