William Nelson

William "Billy" Nelson was an American showman who performed and managed circuses, sideshows, carnivals, in addition to acting as a manufacturer of sideshow attractions through his Nelson Supply House in South Boston, Massachusetts. Nelson's touring career included a stint as a manager with Pawnee Bill's Wild West Show and later working the sideshow of the combination Buffalo Bill & Pawnee Bill "Two Bills Show" in the early years of the twentieth century.

Nelson Supply House

 * 514 E. 4th St., Boston, Massachusetts

Press Coverage

 * &mdash; regarding the seizure of a sideshow gaff, a "naked mother clasping a big-headed baby", by police at Indian Springs, Georgia. The gaff was "exhumed" by one Leonard J. Gregory at his farm and put on exhibit for several months prior to the police action, having been apparently, according to chief detective T. E. Garrett, purchased from the Nelson Supply House of South Boston, Mass.

Shows

 * Billy Nelson's Circus (Museum, Menagerie and Wild West), c. 1891
 * Palace Theater in Manchester, New Hampshire, c. 1900
 * Pawnee Bill's Wild West Show, 1902
 * Down-Town Wagon Show with Miller Brothers' 101 Ranch Wild West, 1908
 * Two Bills Show, 1911