Toby on Barrel flask produced by Brampton Pottery of Derbyshire, England, in 1836. Incised with the name, "Jim Crow," at base and with the number 2 on barrel, this Toby on Barrel flask commemorates the 1836 performance of Thomas "Daddy" Rice's Jim Crow act in England. Throughout the 1830s and 1840s, the white entertainer Thomas Dartmouth Rice (1808-1860) performed a popular song-and-dance act supposedly modeled after an enslaved man. He named the character Jim Crow.
Rice darkened his face, acted like a buffoon, and spoke with an exaggerated and distorted imitation of African American Vernacular English. In his Jim Crow persona, he also sang "Negro ditties" such as "Jump Jim Crow." The flask is a redesigned Toby on Barrel jug with the top closed off to form a flask. The Toby on Barrel is an Ordinary Toby seated on top of a barrel of ale.
Maker:
Brampton Pottery
England
1836
Model #:
Derivative
flask
Size:
large
Height:
9 1/4"
