Grace McDaniels and her son, Elmer, photographed in the early 1940’s. Grace was born a with rare condition known today as Sturge–Weber syndrome, but went on to have a lucritive career with Harry Lewiston’s Traveling Circus. (500×331)
Grace McDaniels and her son, Elmer, photographed in the early 1940’s. Grace was born a with rare condition known today as Sturge–Weber syndrome, but went on to have a lucritive career with Harry Lewiston’s Traveling Circus. (500×331)
Her facial appearance was the result of a rare condition known today as Sturge–Weber syndrome, a congenital disorder affecting the skin, neurological system, and sometimes facial features.
Lewiston’s show was part of a long American tradition of [“freak shows”](https://www.utterlyinteresting.com/post/the-dark-history-of-the-circus-freak-show) that displayed people with rare physical traits or medical conditions. While modern audiences would find the idea exploitative, these shows often offered financial stability and even a degree of fame for people who had few other options in a deeply prejudiced society.
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Born in the small farming community of Valeska, near Numa, Iowa, Grace entered the world to [“perfectly normal” parents,](https://www.utterlyinteresting.com/post/grace-mcdaniels-the-remarkable-life-of-the-mule-faced-woman-who-made-a-living-in-the-sideshows-of) with no family history of deformity.
Her facial appearance was the result of a rare condition known today as Sturge–Weber syndrome, a congenital disorder affecting the skin, neurological system, and sometimes facial features.
Lewiston’s show was part of a long American tradition of [“freak shows”](https://www.utterlyinteresting.com/post/the-dark-history-of-the-circus-freak-show) that displayed people with rare physical traits or medical conditions. While modern audiences would find the idea exploitative, these shows often offered financial stability and even a degree of fame for people who had few other options in a deeply prejudiced society.