A photograph taken around 1900 of a parade “float” in Pitman, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. Note that the occupants of the float are in “black-face.” None of the float occupants are identified and the actual occasion for the parade is unknown.
White men and women who blackened their faces and paraded emphasizing negative stereotypical behavior that they attributed to African Americans for the purpose of getting laughs, were often the most prominent people in the community.
This photo was found in the Larona Heim Collection at the Hermitage, Pitman, and is identified as #26-007.
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