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Jerry LeVasseur Races Forward With Resilience

Lehigh alumnus Jerry LeVasseur, ’60, survived the Hartford Circus Fire at age 6 after attending the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey show with his mother on July 6, 1944.

Published Apr 22, 2026, 9:05 AM EDT | Lehigh University

Jerry LeVasseur, class of 1960, was six years old when he survived the Hartford Circus Fire on July 6, 1944. He attended the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Hartford, Connecticut, with his mother and remembered being excited to see the animals and clowns on a hot, humid day.