Maxwell's Circus of Merriment was founded by the late Maxwell Callumn sr in 1853, it is currently ran by Maxwell Callumn jr. It spends the vast majority of its time traveling in North America by train. Most of anything that can have some astronomical themeing does, from the show names of people working there to the posters put up to advertise.

After the unusual death (via a lion) of Maxwell sr in Rio de Janeiro (they were down there trying to evade taxes) a union was able to from. Before then his exteme union busting scared most people off from trying. Even if, like most circuses of this era, the working conditions were horrible. Many members were card carrying Wobblies during the strikes and the first years of it's realization, but that number has dropped down to only a few very committed syndicalists and socialists.