Heinz Employees' Minstrel Show at Main Plant in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Add to SetSummary
Minstrel shows originated in the decades immediately before the Civil War. Performers blackened their faces to portray African Americans for white audiences. These shows entertained but contained a mixture of racial stereotypes which denigrated African Americans: portraying blacks as inferior, subjecting them to ridicule, and confining them to a preconceived place below white society. Minstrel shows remained popular well into the 20th century.
Minstrel shows originated in the decades immediately before the Civil War. Performers blackened their faces to portray African Americans for white audiences. These shows entertained but contained a mixture of racial stereotypes which denigrated African Americans: portraying blacks as inferior, subjecting them to ridicule, and confining them to a preconceived place below white society. Minstrel shows remained popular well into the 20th century.
Artifact
Photographic print
Creators
Collection Title
On Exhibit
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Object ID
53.41.889
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of H.J. Heinz Co.
Material
Cardboard
Paper (Fiber product)
Technique
Gelatin silver process
Mounting
Color
Sepia (Color)
Dimensions
Height: 17 in (mount)
Width: 20 in (mount)
Height: 10.75 in (photograph)
Width: 14 in (photograph)
Inscriptions
written on front mount: Scene of Employees' Minstrel Show