Some people life live on the edge.
BORN TO BE WILD
William Hunt was born in New York in June 1838, but his family soon moved to Port Hope, Ontario. His upbringing was strict, with Hunt’s parents trying and failing to reign in their wild and impulsive son. For example, he loved swimming, but his parents thought he did it too much. So, his mother sewed up the collars and sleeves of his clothes so he could not shed them and go swimming. But that didn’t stop Hunt. He would either dive in fully clothed and then run around until dry, or he would rip off his clothes, swim, and have older girls sew up the clothes again.
At a young age, Hunt snuck into a traveling circus and he was mesmerized, bitten by the show biz bug. When his parents were not around, Hunt secretly developed his muscles and his ability to do acrobatics. Even though he was just a boy, he put together a small show of music and various circus-like entertainments. Kids came and enjoyed themselves, but parents hated the idea and complained to his parents. Enraged by his son’s frivolous pursuit, his father beat him. But Hunt continued to practice his acrobatics and tightrope walking.
THE WIRE
In 1859, at age 21, Hunt said goodbye to his old self and changed his name to something more fitting of a showman: Signor Guillermo Antonio Farini, or “The Great Farini.” His first public stunt: he strung a rope between two buildings—80 feet in the air, and above the roaring Ganaraska River—and then he walked across. His first stunt sparked such interest that by the time he crossed his second river, 8,000 spectators attended, more than double the population of Port Hope. The major highlight of that walk: When he arrived at the midway point, the Great Farini stopped and stood on his head.
Less than a year later he was upping the ante:
• In 1860, he challenged the legendary French stuntman, Blondin, to walk across the Niagara Gorge near Niagara Falls.
• During a walk across the Falls, Farini reached midpoint and then attached a rope to the tightrope. He proceeded to lower himself onto the deck of the Maid of the Mist 200 feet below. After enjoying a glass of wine and speaking with the passengers, he ascended back up the rope and continued his performance.
• On another walk, he carried a man on his back across the rope.
• One time he wore a sack covering his entire body.
• He learned to perform high-wire somersaults.
• He once hung from the high wire by his feet.
• On September 5, 1860, Farini attached an “Empire Washing Machine” to his body and walked out on his rope, over the Niagara Gorge. He lowered a bucket to the river beneath him and let it fill with water. He then proceeded to fill the machine and wash a dozen handkerchiefs, all given to him by female admirers.
He performed throughout the United States, and in 1866, he made it to Europe where he was a sensation. But in 1869, the Great Farini bid farewell to the tightrope because at age 31, he felt he might injure himself.
THE SHOW MUST GO ON
Still, the Great Farini would not give up show business, training and managing other acrobats. Eventually, he became an impresario, exhibiting pygmies and “Dwarf Earthmen.” In 1885, he partnered with P.T. Barnum for an exploratory trip to Africa. With his adopted son and onetime aerial partner Lulu, Farini traveled through the Kalahari Desert in 1885 and found a colossal lost city there. An exhibit on “The Lost City of Kalahari” was mounted in London. Farini published a book on his explorations titled Through the Kalahari Desert, under his real name.
Farini ultimately learned seven languages, and during World War I, he and his wife, Anna, translated and transcribed daily war events from the German newspapers. Somehow, Farini found the time to invent folding theater seats, a modern-day parachute, and an apparatus that could fire a human like a cannonball. He devised improvements from steam engines and can-packing machines. He even served as vice president of the Rossland Gold Mining Development and Investment Company.
Truly, the Great Farinia lived a full life, and there never was a dull moment. He died at the age of 91 of influenza in 1929.
The Thousand Island Railway in Ontario was North America ‘s shortest railway at 5.43 km