Christy Minstrels
Preserved but no longer current.
For many years the mid- Victorian publics of London and New York were entertained and delighted by the troupe of black-faced minstrels organized by an American, Edwin Christy (1815-62). To the accompaniment of various stage-negro antics they sang plantation songs and cracked innocent jokes with Bones, Sambo, and the rest. They were succeeded by the Moore and Burgess, and other troupes of the same genre.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Christy Minstrels” mean?
For many years the mid- Victorian publics of London and New York were entertained and delighted by the troupe of black-faced minstrels organized by an American, Edwin Christy (1815-62). To the accompaniment of various stage-negro antics they sang plantation songs and cracked innocent jokes with Bones, Sambo, and the rest. They were succeeded by the Moore and Burgess, and other troupes of the same genre.
Is “Christy Minstrels” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.