Fade To Color, Vintage Black Americana
by Melissa Bittinger
Title
Fade To Color, Vintage Black Americana
Artist
Melissa Bittinger
Medium
Photograph - Fine Art Photography, Photographic Art
Description
Now first off, I don't think this is a 'true' lawn jockey' as the little boy is not holding a lantern but trying to find information on it lead me to some historical information I want to share. Some of which is verified as true and some that can't be verified. This could change your mind on how you look or feel about this type of statue.
During the underground railroad, different colors of ribbons would be tied to lawn jockeys letting fleeing slaves know which homes were safe to stop in and which ones to leave alone. This started with the wife of U.S. District Judge Benjamin Piatt. This one small gesture from her eventually spread throughout the South and into Canada and saved many a life.
As to the origins of this type of statue, there are a couple of versions but one legend has it that George Washington created the first groomsman hitching post in the 1770's after the Revolutionary War and after serving as the First President of the United States. It was in honor of a little nine year boy, Tom 'Jocko' Graves, the son of one of the black volunteers fighting with his army.
Tom Graves wanted to fight but was too young to take along on such a dangerous attack, so General Washington left him on the Pennsylvania side to tend to the horses and to keep a light on the bank for their return.
So the story goes, the boy, faithful to his post and his orders, froze to death on the river bank during the night, the lantern still in his hand. The General was so much moved by the boy's devotion to his duty that he had a statue sculpted and cast of him, holding the lantern, and had it installed at his Mount Vernon estate. He called the sculpture 'The Faithful Groomsman'.
While this little boy may not be a lawn 'jockey', he will always remind me that sometimes things are not always as they seem....don't judge a book by it's cover...open it and read.
Uploaded
October 22nd, 2015
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