'''Edwin Pearce Christy''' (November_28, 1815 – May_21, 1862) was an American composer, singer, actor and stage producer. He is more commonly known as '''E.P. Christy''', and was the founder of the Blackface minstrel group Christy's_Minstrels. ==Background== Christy was born in Philadelphia,_PA. He began his career as a Minstrel in Buffalo,_New_York, and toured upstate New_York from 1843 to 1845. The group took the name of its founder and became known as the Christy's_Minstrels. In April 1846 Christy and his band of six performers began performing in New_York_City at Palmo's_Opera_House. The group performed at Mechanics_Hall from February_15, 1847 to July_15, 1854. After performing at a benefit performance for Stephen_Foster in Cincinnati,_Ohio, on August_25, 1847, the group specialized in performances of Foster's works. Foster sold his song, ''Old Folks at Home'', to Christy for his exclusive use. Christy retired as a performer in 1855 but continued as a manager. He operated a chain of theaters called Christy's_Opera_Houses in several cities. The name of the original group, Christy's Minstrels, was licensed for use by a new organization and became synonymous with the performance tradition of blackface minstrelsy. Fearful of financial reverses due to the upheaval of the American_Civil_War, Christy committed Suicide by throwing himself from a window in his New York City house on May 21, 1862. ==References== *Edwin Pearce Christy, at the University of Pennsylvania site. Accessed 6 Sept 2005. * {{cite book|author=Lott, Eric|year=1993|title=Love and Theft: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class|publisher=Oxford University Press|id=ISBN 0-19-509641-X}}. p. 171. * ''NYNY 1861 - 1864'' ==External links== * Edwin Pearce's Gravesite Christy, Edwin Pearce Christy, Edwin Pearce Christy, Edwin Pearce Christy, Edwin Pearce Christy, Edwin Pearce Christy, Edwin Pearce Christy, Edwin Pearce {{US-musician-stub}} {{US-hist-stub}}