Because of the general
illiteracy of the populace, early store owners used descriptive
emblems or figures to advertise their shops' wares; for example,
barber poles advertise
barber shops,
show globes advertised
apothecaries and
three gold balls represented
pawn shops. American Indians and
tobacco had always been associated because American Indians introduced tobacco to Europeans. A
Highlander figure indicated the sale of Scottish snuff, and a
Blackamoor figure that tobacco from the Caribbean was available. Because European carvers had never seen a Native American, these early cigar-store "Indians" looked more like Africans with feathered headdresses and other fanciful, exotic features. These carvings were called "Black Boys" or "Virginians" in the trade. Eventually, the European cigar-store figure began to take on a more "authentic" yet highly stylized native visage, and by the time the smoke-shop figure arrived in the Americas in the late 18th century, it had become thoroughly "Indian." :It appears that the first man to introduce carved figures as tobacconists' signs was a certain Chichester. They were carved by one Tom Millard. This was about forty years ago. John Cromwell, Nick Collins, Thomas V. Brooks, and Thomas White are also prominent figures in the early history of the art.... Most of the men in the business originally carved figureheads for ships. But with the decay of American shipping they lost their occupation.... Samuel Anderson Robb|[S.A.] Robb himself brought a good artistic training to the workshop, for he studied at the Academy of Design for a number of years. The
Times further notes that as the market became saturated with Indians, popular taste expanded to figures of Scotchmen, English officers with bearskins,
Dolly Vardens,
John L. Sullivan,
Edwin Forrest in Roman garb, Turks, sultanas, Punch (of
Punch and Judy), and plantation Blacks. The price of a small Indian was then $16, and full custom figures might cost $125. Most figures, however, were simply copied from existing ones. The
Times article describes traditional fabrication techniques as follows. The wood was typically white pine, bought as logs at spar yards. The artist first blocked out a very rough outline by axe, guided by paper patterns. A hole was then bored into each end of the log, about 5 inches in depth, and a bolt placed into each. The log was then suspended from these bolts on supports so it could freely turn. The sculptor then used chisels, followed by finer carving tools, to create the finished figure. Arms and hands were created separately, then screwed into the body. The last steps were to paint it and set it up upon a stand. == Modern times ==