Vermont’s famous educated pig, Ben Butler, had a successful career working with his owner, Charles Winn. But the porcine performer was simply the latest in a series of sagacious swine; Ben Butler was no mere pig but, in his own way, a carefully trained artist of deception.
In the fall of 1875, Charles Winn bought a small pig from his neighbor, Henry Bradley, and named him “Ben Butler” after the controversial Union general. Although Gen. Butler had a slightly porcine appearance, it was likely that the name was a reference to his actions in the Civil War rather than his physical demeanor. Butler’s strict imposition of martial law in New Orleans earned him the sobriquet “The Beast.”
Charlie Winn was born in 1838, and lived in North Danville, Vermont—about 50 miles south of the Canadian border. He was first and foremost a farmer, but in those days that meant he was a jack-of-all-trades and, by necessity, ready to do anything to make a living for himself and his wife Georgianna. To make matters worse, Charles had just one arm, which had rendered him exempt from Civil War service. Although his impairment had kept him safe from the cauldron of war, it made a farmer’s life even more of a challenge. Like many Vermonters, Winn went out west to seek his fortune. He tried his luck in California for a few years; a voter registration list for 1860s San Francisco indicates his occupation as a waterman. Perhaps he was a deckhand on a packet ship or ferry. The last mention of Winn in a San Francisco voter registry lists “showman” as his occupation. After a few years in the West, Winn returned to Vermont.
At the family farm on Pumpkin Hill, he set about training Ben Butler, the young porker. With his trained pig, Charlie eventually became a professional showman. Forming an instant attachment to his new pet, Charlie found the animal a quick and willing student and he was soon able to exhibit the animal prodigy at county fairs, church socials, and local talent shows, reaping far greater rewards than the rashers of bacon that otherwise would have been the pig’s fate. Charlie even billed himself as Prof. Winn, a common prefix used by magicians, ventriloquists, and confidence men in the 19th century. Ben Butler was an instant success.