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We uses pears soap fo' de complexun [graphic].
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African American History Graphics Collection
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African American History Photographs
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Details
Creator
Wood, George Bacon, 1832-1909, photographer.
Title
We uses pears soap fo' de complexun [graphic].
Publisher
[Philadelphia]
Publisher
PA. Philadelphia. 1886
Date
[ca. 1886]
Physical Description
1 photograph : platinum ; sheet 15 x 20 cm (5.75 x 7.75 in.)
Description
Racist scene depicting three young African American girls in summer dresses sitting on a fence inscribed with chalk in the vernacular, "We Uses Pears Soap fo' de Complexun." The girl in the left, attired in a long-sleeved, cotton dress and shoes, sits with her left hand on her knee and her right hand on her lap. In the middle, the barefooted girl, attired in a striped, long-sleeved cotton dress, smiles with her feet crossed and resting her hands on her lap. In the right, the girl, wearing long, curly hair and attired in a long-sleeved cotton dress with fraying at the bottom, striped stockings, and shoes, rests her hands on her lap and looks at the viewer. Andrew Pears first produced and sold Pears soap in 1807. In 1835, his grandson Francis Pears joined the business, and the firm was renamed A. & F. Pears. Lever Brothers purchased the firm in 1920.
Notes
Title from item.
Gift Elsie Wood Harmon, 1982.
RVCDC
Description revised 2022.
Access points revised 2022.
Part of digital collections catalog through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services as administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education through the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Tom Corbett, Governor, 2013-2014.
Biographical / historical note
Wood, a Philadelphia artist, turned to photography in the 1880s exhibiting his work, including genre studies of African Americans, at national and international photography exhibitions. His photographs won several prizes.
Subject
A. & F. Pears.
African American girls.
Fences -- United States.
Racism in popular culture.
Genre
Group portraits -- 1880-1890.
Platinum prints -- 1880-1890.
Portrait photographs -- 1880-1890.
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia| Print Department| photo - Wood [P.8743.186]
Accession number
P.8743.186
In Collections
African American History Photographs
Race and Visual Culture Digital Collection, 1866-1900
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