Sideshow Al Salvail

There’s a description among historians for performers who traveled widely and played rural towns and hamlets, frequently one-night stands, but always on the road—Long Grass Showmen. The subject of this post is one such gentleman by the name of Adolph Louis Salvail.

Often times while going through my scaling card collection, I come upon a single card, fairly unimposing, and certainly not one of the “big names,” but intriguing just the same. Such was the case the Salvail. His card (below) is smaller than most, measuring only 3-1/4” x2”. It shows his face in the center of an ace of spades and identifies him as a “card expert.” The reverse features an attractive playing card design.