Nancy Green was born a slave in Montgomery
County, Kentucky in 1834 and became one of the first black corporate
models in the United States. She subsequently moved to Chicago where
in 1890 she was hired by R.T. Davis under an exclusive to promote his
ready-mixed, self-rising pancake flour which he called Aunt Jemima Pancake
Mix. Davis had just bought the formula from the Pearl Milling Company
after they went bankrupt. Nancy was to dress in what is now an iconic
costume to promote the product and soon became the advertising world's first
living trademark.
The Aunt Jemima name and costume were the idea of Chris Rutt, a
newspaperman who was one of the owners of the Pearl Milling Company after he
attended a vaudeville show where he heard a tune called "Aunt Jemima"
sung by a blackface performer who was wearing an apron and bandanna
headband. The rest, as they say, is history.
At the 1893 Colombian Exposition in Chicago,
Davis made an all-out effort to promote the new pancake mix, and built the
world's largest flour barrel. 'Nancy Green demonstrated how to use the new
mix, and the exhibit was so popular, police had to control the crowds at the
Aunt Jemima booth. Nancy was awarded a medal and proclaimed 'Pancake
Queen' by the Fair officials. |
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Portrait of Nancy Green as
"Aunt Jemima" by A. B. Frost |
Soon signed to a lifetime contract by Davis,
Green was a hit all across the country, as she toured demonstrating the new
Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix, and by 1910 it was available nationally. She played
the part of Aunt Jemima until her death on September 24, 1923 in a
car accident) Aunt Jemima Mills were subsequently purchased in 1925 by the
Quaker Oats Company of Chicago.
The name "Jemima" is biblical in origin and
comes from Yəmīmā, the first of Job's daughters. The term "Aunt Jemima" has
unfortunately also taken on a derogatory connotation of a "mammy" when
applied to African American women and is considered offensive to
African-Americans today.
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