Rollin Howard (c. 1840 - June 19, 1879) was an American minstrel performer, best known for his female

blackface Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person. In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of racial stereo ...

impersonations. Howard was born as Ebenezer G.B. Holder in New York City around 1840, and appeared in minstrel productions from approximately 1860 to 1870. He appeared in other dramatic performances both before and after his minstrel period.Rice, Edward Le Roy
Monarchs of minstrelsy, from "Daddy" Rice to date
p. 127-28 (1911) After the American Civil War, female impersonators became more common in minstrel shows, and Howard was considered one of the leading performers in such roles, along with

Francis Leon Francis Leon (born Francis Patrick Glassey; November 21, 1844 – August 19, 1922) was a blackface minstrel performer best known for his work as a female impersonator. He was largely responsible for making the prima donna a fixture of blackface m ...

and Eugene d'Amelie.Ferris, Lesley
Crossing the stage: controversies on cross-dressing
p. 86 (1993) Among songs that Howard performed, he was credited with "arranging" on one of the first sheet music publications for ''

Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me ''Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me'' or ''Shew! fly, don't bother me'' is a minstrel show song from the 1860s that has remained popular since that time. It was sung by soldiers during the Spanish–American War of 1898, when flies and the yellow fever mo ...

'' in 1869.Sanjek, Russell
American Popular Music and Its Business: From 1790 to 1909
p. 371-72 (1988) The song was extremely popular, and though the exact authorship is not clear, at times Howard has received some authorship credit.(1 August 1902)
Stories of Famous Songs
''Houston Daily Post'' ("Shoo Fly Don't Bodder Me which was once credited to T. Brigham Bishop the old minstrel, was written according to White's diary by Rollin Howard ....")(30 August 1872)
Personal
''Detroit Free Press'' ("Rollin Howard, author of the famous song "Shoo Fly," has gone to Europe.")

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Rollin Blackface minstrel performers American drag queens 1879 deaths 1840s births 19th-century American singers