Sissieretta Jones’ “Stunning” Performance Gown Restored

Sometimes treasures are hidden in plain view and go unnoticed for years. Such was the case in 2013 when Ray Rickman and Robb Dimmick found a box in a storage bin of items belonging to the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society in Providence. When they opened the box,...

Rhode Island’s Star Soprano: Sissieretta Jones

The life of Sissieretta Jones (also known as the Black Patti) is highlighted this month in the latest issue of Rhode Island History, a peer-reviewed journal published by the Rhode Island Historical Society. Her picture, which appears on a Black Patti poster owned by...

Sissieretta Jones in South Carolina

The great African American soprano, Mme. Sissieretta Jones, also known as the “Black Patti,” performed in South Carolina with her troupe many times between 1889 and 1914. The first visit the 40-member Black Patti Troubadours made to the state was in Charleston on...

Sissieretta Jones (“Black Patti”) at the Morton Theatre

On January 25, 1912, Sissieretta Jones, also known as the “Black Patti,” performed with her Black Patti Musical Comedy Company at the Morton Theatre, a black-owned theatre in downtown Athens, Georgia. The Morton Theatre, one of the few remaining black vaudeville...