© Copyright 2020 - The Library Company of Philadelphia, 1314 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107. TEL (215) 546-3181 FAX (215) 546-5167
For inquiries, please contact our IT Department
- Title
- The Rivals embrace
- Description
- Racist, satiric trade card promoting varnish manufacturer Clarence Brooks and Co. Depicts a genre scene with two African American men suitors courting an African American woman while trying to ice skate on a frozen river. The figures are caricaturized and portrayed with exaggerated features. Two men, their mouths open clutch onto one another, their legs twisted, as they try not to fall on the ice. The man to the left is attired in ice skates; blue pants; a red jacket; white collared shirt; and a top hat that has fallen off. The man to the right is attired in ice skates; yellow suit with red checks; and a top hat. The woman they court watches the scene from the shore. Her mouth is open and her hands are apart in alarm. She is attired in white shoes; red stockings; a blue dress; purple coat; and straw bonnet adorned with a pink feather. In the background are two more ice skaters and a building. Clarence Brooks established his varnish business in 1859 as Brooks and Fitzgerald, later Clarence Brooks & Co. In 1881, the firm issued a calendar illustrated with African American caricatures in genre scenes., Title from item., Place of publication deduced from place of operation of advertised business., Date deduced from history of the advertised business and visual content., Gift of David Doret.
- Date
- [ca. 1880]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Goldman Trade Card Collection - Clarence [P.2017.95.26]
- Title
- [African American woman being courted by an African American man suitor as a dog bites his pants]
- Description
- Racist, trade card specimen depicting caricatures of an African American woman being courted by an African American man suitor as a dog bites his pants. In the left, the African American woman, attired in a straw hat decorated with a green ribbon and bow; gold hoop earrings; a ruffled, blue-checked dress with white sleeves and blue polka dots; and white shoes, stands with her back to the suitor. She carries a red book in her left hand and places her index finger on her right hand to her lips as she looks pensively down at the suitor. In the right, the barefooted, African American man, attired in a white top hat decorated with a black band, a white shirt with an oversized collar, a red bowtie, and yellow overalls with red stripes and suspenders, kneels as he looks up at the woman with his hands out. A small, white and brown dog with a brown collar bites and pulls at the seat of the man’s pants., Title devised by cataloger., Date deduced from the visual content., Gift of David Doret.
- Date
- [ca. 1880]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Goldman Trade Card Collection - Misc. 1 [P.2017.95.212]
- Title
- The wooing of the twins Universal, perfect and elegant stoves and ranges. Manufactured by Cribben, Sexton & Co., Chicago, Ill
- Description
- Racist trade card promoting stove manufacturer Cribben, Sexton & Co. and depicting a genre scene with African American caricatures originally created for Harper’s Weekly in 1878 by Sol Eytinge that satirized the courtship and marriage of and the start of families by "The Twins." Figures are portrayed with exaggerated features. Shows the two couples sitting in wooden chairs. The twin sisters are identically attired in yellow dresses with red polka dots and white collars. In the left one sister holds a fan as she coyly looks and smiles to the man seated to her right. He is attired in black shoes; blue and white striped pants; a white collared shirt with red tie; and a green jacket. His hands are on on his knees. In the right the other sister touches her chin with her finger as she leans towards the man seated opposite her. Her suitor is attired in black shoes; red and white striped pants; a white shirt; and a black jacket with tails. In the center behind the couples is a mantel with cups, plates, and bowls placed on top. Inside the mantel is a stove with a kettle on it. In the right background, the parents of the twins are sitting in chairs. The father, attired in a blue jacket and beige pants, reads a newspaper. The mother is attired in a red dress. Henry Cribben and James A. Sexton founded the stove manufactory Cribben, Sexton & Co. in Chicago in 1873. The Company closed in 1965., Title from item., Date deduced from history of the advertised business., Distributor's imprint printed on verso: Sayles & Conover, Dealers in stoves and hardware, A full line of universal, Perfect and elegant stoves and ranges always on hand. Valparaiso, Indiana., Gift of David Doret., Forms part of a series [P.2017.95.37 & P.2017.95.38].
- Date
- [ca. 1880]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Goldman Trade Card Collection - Cribben, Sexton & Co. [P.2017.95.36]