May Wirth

May Emmeline Wirth (6 June 1894 – 18 October 1978) was an Australian circus and vaudeville performer famous for her ability to do somersaults forwards and backwards on a running horse. She was born in Queensland and adopted by Mary Elizabeth Victoria Wirth as a child into the Wirth circus family.

Early life
Wirth was born in Bundaberg, Queensland on 6 June 1894. She was the daughter of a Mauritian circus artist, John Edward Zinga (Despoges) and Dezeppo Marie, née Beaumont.

In 1901, Wirth was adopted by Mary Wirth, an equestrienne and the sister of Wirth's Circus proprietors Philip and George Wirth.

Career
From age 10, Wirth began performing in balancing and equestrian shows in Melbourne and Sydney.

Wirth performed with the Barnum and Bailey circus in the US, and was the star of Wirth's Circus in 1916, as the "greatest bareback riding star".

When aged 19, during her second year in the United States, she suffered severe injuries while performing in Brooklyn after her horse shied and she was dragged around the ring when her foot became caught.

She stopped performing in 1937 and started living in New York.

Personal life
On 27 November 1919, Wirth married her manager, Frank White who adopted her surname. The couple did not have children. She died in Sarasota, Florida in 1978 and was cremated.

Legacy
She was inducted to the Circus Hall of Fame as a bareback rider in 1964.

Wirth and her step-sister appeared on an Australia Post commemorative postage stamp issued on 13 March 1997 commemorating 150 years of circus in Australia.