Mexican ice cream and tamale vendor, Nicolas Martinez, standing by two boys who are eating ice cream on Olvera Street, Los Angeles, 1890

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Title	Mexican ice cream and tamale vendor, Nicolas Martinez, standing by two boys who are eating ice cream on Olvera Street, Los Angeles, 1890
Description	Photograph of Mexican ice cream and tamale vendor, Nicolas Martinez, standing by two boys who are eating ice cream on Olvera Street, Los Angeles, 1890. Martinez can be seen standing at center wearing white pants, a white shirt, and a hat. He is balancing his wares on his head, while he holds a tray of water in his right hand to wash and store the glasses and spoons. He has a moustache, and two boys can be seen eating ice cream out of glasses to the right of Martinez. One of the boys wears suspenders, while the other wears a jacket. Both wear hats. They can be seen standing on rocky soil with the tall wall of a building behind them. Photoprint reads, "cf. Newmark, p. 391".; "Eyes will kindle with a reminiscent gleam and lips smack between chuckles when an Old-Timer of Los Angeles views the pictures of Nicholas Martinez, the ice cream man of the Eighties [1880's] and Nineties [1890's]. Old Nicholas with his spotless, albeit somewhat ragged, white shirt and trousers was a figure of perennial delight to the boyhood of Los Angeles, both American and Mexican. Up and down the sunny streets he trudged, a stout tub of chilled merchandise balanced above his swarthy face. In his hand he carried a shallow tray of water which both held and 'washed' the glasses and spoons. (The free hand deftly rolled a cigarillo, whenever the urge came to smoke.) Can you hear him, you oldsters that were youngsters in those days, repeating his rolling call, 'R-r-ice cream! R-r-ice cream!' The price of a tumblerfull of the cold and somewhat cornstarchy mixture was ten cents to American boys and five cents to the young Mexicans. You're quite right, the foxey American kids hid behind a fence, while a little Mexican friend went out and bought the ice cream for them at the lower price, receiving a penny or a 'lick out of the glass' as a reward. There were no pure food laws then. The ice cream wasn't particularly creamy. Old Nicholas usually cleaned the spoons with the ball of his not too clean thumb; but to young healthy fellers it was good -- licking' good -- and the memory lingers through the years" -- From "R-R-Ice Cream! Muchachos" by Sam Behrendt.
Subject (adlf)	buildings
Subject (file heading)	Los Angeles County -- Los Angeles -- Sonora Town -- General
Subject (lcsh)	Ice cream, ices, etc. Mexican Americans
Geographic subject (roadway)	Olvera Street
Geographic subject (city or populated place)	Los Angeles
Geographic subject (county)	Los Angeles
Geographic subject (state)	California
Geographic subject (country)	USA
Coverage date	1890
Contributor	Behrendt, Sam, commentator
Publisher (of the digital version)	University of Southern California. Libraries
Date created	1890
Type	images
Format	glass plate negatives
Format (aacr2)	2 photographs : glass photonegative, photoprint, b&w ; 22 x 17 cm., 20 x 25 cm.
Format (aat)	photographic prints photographs
Accession number	365
Call number	CHS-365
Microfiche number	1-224; 1-15-16
Legacy record ID	chs-m4907; USC-1-1-1-5005
Part of collection	California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960
Part of subcollection	Title Insurance and Trust, and C.C. Pierce Photography Collection, 1860-1960
Project	USC
Rights	California Historical Society
Access conditions	Send requests to address or e-mail given. Phone (213) 821-2366; fax (213) 740-2343.
Repository name	USC Libraries Special Collections
Repository address	Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189
Repository email	specol@usc.edu
Filename	CHS-365
Archival file	chs_Volume147/CHS-365.tiff

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Mexican ice cream and tamale vendor, Nicolas Martinez, standing by two boys who are eating ice cream on Olvera Street, Los Angeles, 1890

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