As a boy in the mid-1800s, Baldwin ran away from home and joined the circus. He eventually wound up in Colorado where he awed crowds as a funambulist, or high-wire walker, who crossed Eldorado Canyon dozens of times, and kept at it well into his 80s. Baldwin was also the first person to fly a powered aircraft in Colorado. He was even big in Japan, performing a hot-air balloon act for the emperor.
Denver writer Stephen White, who has a fascination for Baldwin, spoke with Colorado Matters host Ryan Warner.
