<P> After May 21, 2017, the train and its cars were either auctioned off or sold to scrappers . In March of 2018, Kirby Family Farms located in Williston, Florida bought some of the cars and planned to turn them into hotels . </P> <P> Many animal welfare and animal rights organizations are opposed to the use of wild animals in circuses . Many of these groups actively campaign against circuses by staging protests outside of venues over alleged animal rights violations . The groups argue that animals used in the circus are subjected to cruel and inhumane treatment during training, harsh conditions during transport, and a general lack of mental and physical stimulation . </P> <P> Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey was investigated following the death of a lion who died from heat and lack of water while the circus train was travelling through the Mojave Desert . In 1998, the United States Department of Agriculture filed charges against Ringling Bros. for forcing a sick elephant to perform . Ringling paid a $20,000 fine . </P> <P> In 2000, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), PETA, and other animal groups sued the circus, alleging that it violated the Endangered Species Act by its treatment of Asian elephants in its circus . These allegations were based primarily on the testimony of a circus barn worker . After years of litigation and a six - week non-jury trial, the Court dismissed the suit in a written decision in 2009, finding that the barn worker was not credible (ASPCA v. Feld Entm 't, Inc., 677 F. Supp . 2d 55 (D.D.C. 2009)). Meanwhile, the circus learned during the trial that the animal rights groups had paid the barn worker $190,000 to be a plaintiff in the lawsuit . The circus then sued the animal rights groups under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act in 2007, accusing the groups of conspiracy to harm its business and other illegal acts . In December 2012, the ASPCA agreed to pay the circus $9.2 million to settle its part of the lawsuit . The 14 - year course of litigation came to an end in May 2014 when The Humane Society of the United States and a number of other animal rights groups paid a $16 million settlement to the circus' parent company, Feld Entertainment . </P>

Where did the name barnum and bailey come from