Thomas D. Rice (c.1806-1860)

Thomas Dartmouth Rice is believed to be the first of the blackface minstrels. He was a comedian in the 1820s. Rice performed the first popular minstrel song, "Jump Jim Crow," which he learned from an elderly African-American in 1828, but turned into a mockery of blacks and an exploitation of their culture. After tremendous success in the U.S., Rice went to England, where his form of entertainment became a rage. Rice launched a peculiar American tradition: the minstrel show.

Date:
1859 circa 5 years
Original Format:
Carte de Visite
Item#:
MES20127
Photographer:
C. D. Fredricks & Co.
Height:
1192px
Width:
721px
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