Every May 25th the village of Chepachet observes Elephant Day. It is a day of remembrance for Betty the Learned Elephant, also known as ‘Little Bet’, who was shot to death by a group of Masons while crossing the bridge over the Chepachet River.
Sadly, Little Bet was not the first elephant murdered in the village. Her predecessor was Old Bet, one of the first elephants brought to the United States by Hakaliah Bailey, a distant relative of the James Bailey, one of the founders of the famous Barnum and Bailey Circus.
Old Bet was imported during the early 1800s, when exotic animals began to be a popular attraction in the country. As a big draw, Old Bet’s presence angered religious zealots of the time, who felt the elephant distracted citizens from their prayers and service to the church. In 1816 one of those zealots shot and killed Old Bet while the elephant was allegedly crossing his property.
Little Bet replaced Old Bet, and traveled from the Carolinas to Maine performing as Betty the Learned Elephant. In 1826, on her second trip to Chepachet, she was killed by a group of men from the local order of Masons, presumably for the same reason as her predecessor.
This dark day in Chepachet’s history was kept quiet until 1976, when May 25 was named Elephant Day, and the plaque pictured above was placed on the bridge where poor Betty met her end.
