Go way white trash, dis chile dance yer blind [graphic] / G. W. Leonard. 1877.
Title
Go way white trash, dis chile dance yer blind
Description
Reproduction of a sketch by G. W. Leonard depicting an African American shoeshine boy dancing to the musical accompaniment of a white boy and girl, while a white boy mocks him in the background. The smiling African American boy, portrayed in racist caricature with exaggerated features, is in the center of the image. He is attired in a white, long-sleeved open neck shirt, baggy striped pants with suspenders, and a hat with turned up brims, his hands at his side, and mid step. To his right, stand a white boy playing a concertina and a white girl playing the violin. The boy is attired in a newsboy's cap, a jacket, and pants with patches at the knees. The girl is attired in a short-sleeved, calf-length, light-colored dress, with a sash draped over her right shoulder (the one on which she plays the violin). A shoeshine box marked (with the letter s's backwards), "t. Smith. Boss Shine, 5 cts.," rests near the feet of the trio of children. In the background, a white boy, attired in torn and worn clothes and with mop-like hair, appears in a clomping stance with his arms raised to his shoulders, his back leg bent at the knee, and his other leg kicked out. His hat lays on the ground near him., Date from copyright statement: Copyright 1877, by J. P. Soule., John P. Soule was a Boston photographer who also published stereographs and cartes de visite. He served in the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts at the end of the Civil War., Purchased with the Davida T. Deutsch African American History Fund and funds for the Visual Culture Program., RVCDC, Description revised 2021., Access points revised 2021.
Date
[1877]
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department cdv - misc. - caricatures and cartoons - G [P.2015.63]
[Laird, Schober & Mitchell trade cards]
Title
[Laird, Schober & Mitchell trade cards]
Description
Series of trade cards and caricatures promoting Laird, Schober & Mitchell and depicting clowns or harlequins. "I see nothing will suit but Laird, Schober & Mitchell's" depicts a white boy harlequin trying to fit a shoe on a seated white woman fairy with wings and a wand. "Too fine to Blacken!" is a racist trade card depicting a white boy clown kicking an African American shoe shine boy from behind. In the right, the white boy, attired white clown costume with a white cap decorated with a blue ball, a white shirt with ruffles at the neck and waist, white pants with a ruffle at the cuffs, white stockings, and blue shoes, carries a jump rope in both hands. He smiles at the viewer and kicks his left foot propelling the shoe shiner into the air. The shoe shiner is attired in a blue jacket with tails, white pants, black stockings, and brown shoes. His top hat, shoe shining stool, and open can of shoe polish fly away from him. "Oh! my!!..just look at them!!!" shows a white man admiring the shoes of a young, white woman who carries a butter churn. In the background are farm animals including a cow. "How beautifully they fit" depicts a white woman descending the stairs while grasping the hand of a white man, attired in a military uniform who carries a bouquet of flowers. Also a card depicting a white woman in a parlor holding up her skirt to reveal her new shoes, with the shoe box labeled, "Laird, Shober & Mitchell, Philadelphia" on the table. Laird, Schober & Mitchell's Shoes began operating in 1870 and was a partnership formed by Samuel S. Laird, George P. Schober and George A. Mitchell., Title supplied by cataloger., Date inferred from content., Four trade cards [1975.F.488-491] contain advertising text printed on versos: A request before purchasing shoes. Examine ours. Prices are now reduced and goods finest manufactured. Laird, Schober & Mitchell, 1133 Arch Street, Philad'a., Gift of Emily Phillips, 1883., 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.
Date
[ca. 1880]
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department trade card - Laird [1975.F.488-491; 1975.F.506]