Details
Contributor E. Ketterlinus & Co., printer.
Phillips, Emily, 1822-1909, collector.
Title [J. & P. Coat's thread trade cards] [graphic].
Publisher [United States] : [publisher not identified]
Publisher UNITED STATES. 1885
Date [ca. 1885]
Physical Description 11 prints : chromolithographs ; sheet 8.5 x 11.5 cm (3.25 x 4.75 in.) or smaller.
Description Series of trade cards promoting J.&. P. Coats thread and depicting men, women and children performing a variety of activities with the thread, including a white girl swinging on a tree swing; a white man fishing in a stream while a white woman watches; and several white children pretending to be a horse team. Includes a large frog on a riverbank. "So do my sisters and my cousins and my aunts!" depicts an older white woman carrying packages. "Gulliver and the Lilliputians" based on Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" shows an oversized Gulliver being tied down with thread by the Lilliputians. "That's the kind! Bring me some more" depicts an older white woman inspecting different colored spools of thread in a box held up by a white boy. "Ef dis don't fetch you nothing will" depicts an African American man and woman, portrayed in racist caricature, trying to tame a donkey. In the left, the woman, attired in a white bonnet with a red ribbon, a red shirt, a blue scarf, a yellow shirt, a white apron, and gray shoes, uses thread from an enormous J. & P. Coats spool to pull on the bridle on the donkey, who pulls back with its mouth open. Behind the donkey, the man stands, attired in a brown, brimmed hat, a red shirt, blue plaid pants, and blue shoes, who holds a rope in his left hand and scratches his head with his left hand. "We never fade!" depicts an African American boy, portrayed in racist caricature, sitting on an oversized spool of thread in a field. Shows the boy seated and with his legs straddling a giant spool of black thread. He says “we never fade!!” and points his finger at the sun, which has a face and a concerned expression with a downward turned mouth. The boy is barefoot and attired in a white collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows; a multi-colored tie and belt; and red pants rolled up to the knees. In the foreground, two black crows look at the thread. A house is visible in the right background.
Brothers James Coats, Jr. (1803-1845) and Peter Coats (1808-1890) established the firm J.&P. Coats, a thread manufactory. Their brother Thomas Coats (1809-1883) joined the firm soon after. By 1840, three quarters of the British company’s business was with the United States. In 1896, the firm merged with thread manufacturer Clark & Co. and formed J. & P. Coats, Ltd. In 2015, the firm was renamed, “Coats Group.”
Notes Title supplied by cataloger.
Five prints printed by E. Ketterlinus & Co.
Ten prints contain advertising text printed on versos, including promotions for J. & P. Coat's best six cord, soft finish spool cotton; a table of needle and thread numbers; a calendar for 1880; and a description of "Gulliver and the Lilliputians" illustration (on recto of print 1975.F.220).
Gift of Emily Phillips, 1883. Purchase 1999. Purchase 2001.
RVCDC
Description revised 2021.
Access points revised 2021.
Cataloging funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012.
Digitized.
Subject J. & P. Coats.
African American boys -- Caricatures and cartoons.
African American men -- Caricatures and cartoons.
African American women -- Caricatures and cartoons.
African Americans -- Caricatures and cartoons.
Children.
Cotton industry -- New Jersey -- Newark.
Crows.
Donkeys.
Fishing.
Frogs.
Older people.
Play (Recreation).
Pointing fingers.
Racism in popular culture.
Sun.
Swings.
Thread.
Thread industry -- New Jersey -- Newark.
Genre Calendars -- 1880-1890.
Chromolithographs -- 1880-1890.
Trade cards -- 1880-1890.
Provenance Phillips, Emily, 1822-1909, collector.
Location Library Company of Philadelphia| Print Department| trade card - Coats [1975.F.123; 1975.F.126; 1975.F.133; 1975.F.150; 1975.F.157; 1975.F.193; 1975.F.195; 1975.F.220; 69211.D; P.9743; P.9984.4]
Accession number 1975.F.123
1975.F.126
1975.F.133
1975.F.150
1975.F.157
1975.F.193
1975.F.195
1975.F.220
69211.D
P.9743
P.9984.4