This next one is ugly, but is a reminder of times when there was little sensitivity towards people who were in any way different. It is a photograph of seven young boys from an 1899 Christmas pageant at the Methodist Sunday School in New Paris, Ohio. It shows seven young boys in blackface and dresses, with the handwritten caption (spelling retained), “Seven Little Pickaninies.” On the back are dialect lyrics to the song “Lulaby by Pickaninnies.” Item 88. $325.
Item 43 is a scrapbook compiled by Phyllis and Harris Legg. The Leggs were performers in the Shipstads & Johnson Ice Follies in the 1950s. This was the first traveling ice show, founded in 1936, and active until 1979. It includes photographs, newspaper clippings, ticket stubs, and Christmas cards. The album is inscribed to “Tricia and Donna.” Harris Legg was a speed skater who qualified for the 1936 Olympics but did not attend as he could not afford the fare. He and his wife performed breathtaking maneuvers on ice, including one on stilt skates. The scrapbook contains various pictures of performers in the show, including the Pastor Twins, pictured on this page. $1,250.
Brian Cassidy, Bookseller, may be reached at 301-589-0789 or books@briancassidy.net. The website is www.briancassidy.net.
