Minstrel shows are a fraught topic in the history of American musical theater, American race relations, and Trenton’s music history. In his book, Quest for Equality: Trenton’s Black Community, 1890-1965,  historian Jack Washington wrote that the black community was pained by the popularity of blackface minstrelsy : The 1890s saw a renaissance in minstrel companies across […]

Fletcher’s Minstrels was a popular ensemble that played many regional venues in the late 19th and early 20th century, according to the Trenton Historical Society. While the documentary record on this group is thin, there are photographs of two of the members:  banjo player Annie Waldron and William Fletcher, who is referred to as a banjo […]