Object Details
- composer
- Wilson, R. O.
- performers
- Ethiopian Serenaders
- publisher
- F. D. Benteen
- Description
- This sheet music is for the song “The Old Gum Tree.” The cover notes that the song was “sung with rapturous applause by the Ethiopian Serenaders,” and “composed for the Piano Forte by R.O. Wilson.” The song was composed in 1848, and was part of the culture of “coon songs” that became popular entertainment during the period. “Ethiopian” singers and performers were what blackface performers often called themselves, traveling in troupes and performing various song and dance numbers in often crass and racist stereotypes.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- publishing date
- 1848
- ID Number
- 1983.0313.18
- accession number
- 1983.0313
- catalog number
- 1983.0313.18
- Object Name
- sheet music
- Physical Description
- paper (overall material)
- ink (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 14 1/4 in x 10 1/2 in; 36.195 cm x 26.67 cm
- place made
- United States: Maryland, Baltimore
- See more items in
- Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
- Popular Entertainment
- Music & Musical Instruments
- Sheet Music
- National Museum of American History
- Record ID
- nmah_670707
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ab-6507-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
