Has anyone any information on Sunflower Minstrels? It was based in the South.?

Question:

Has anyone any information on Sunflower Minstrels? It was based in the South.?

My great grandfather, grandparents and mother were involved with this in the early part of the century. A question was asked by a person from UK regarding same. I believe the name came from Sunflower County in Arkansas, although a great grandmother's family was from England (Osborne was the surname).

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: The information I have on the Sunflower Minstrels is mostly through old newspaper clippings, and the majority of these clippings are more like brevities/advertisements for their shows and appearances than information regarding them as a group. The following from a Dallas paper is probably the best I have about their background:

"Meine Brothers' Band and Orchestra was the leading musical organization here in the early '80s, and it was one of the finest things of the kind we have ever had. Meine Brothers went to Los Angeles and became famous there. Old-timers will recall the Sunflower Minstrels. Once a year, the Sunflowers, all Dallas boys, gave a series of entertainments, and once, they went to Bryan and gave a performance at a school commencement. Dick Flanagan is due all the credit for organizing and rehearsing this aggregation. Members of the company were Will and Walter Mansfield, Hotentot dancers; George Whittaker, song and dance artist; Brother George and I, clog dancers; James Pfouts and Will Gleason, singers; Tom Harris, interlocutor and leader of the orchestra; and Dick Daley and Will Mansfield, end men." (Dallas Morning News - Dec. 23, 1923, p. 2)

A paper from twenty years prior to the above has a bit of relevant info:

"The Sunflower Minstrels will appear for the first time before a Fitchburg audience, in Lincoln Hall, Monday evening, May 12 at 8:30. The company carries its own scenery and costumes and it is rumored that if satisfactory arrangements can be made, they will make this city their headquarters during the coming season." (Fitchburg Sentinel [Fitchburg, Massachusetts] - May 7, 1902, p. 2)

I did not come across the Osborne name in any articles, and only have come across (as of yet) one that names many of the members (other than the Dallas one above). This paragraph is an excerpt describing a performance in Trenton, New Jersey (Trenton Evening Times - May 24, 1920):

"A delightful program has been arranged as follows: Openng chorus by the entire company: "When You Look in the Heart of a Rose," solo by Mrs. Willard Winder: "Nobody Knows," solo by Mrs. August Roller: "Dreamy Alabama," duet by Mrs. Stephen Gedlinsky and Mrs. Henry Blickert: "A Smart Little Fellow," solo by Mrs. Edgar Leip: "Hark," solo by Miss Emma Applegate: "You're a Million Miles from Nowhere," solo by Mrs. Edward Wildblood: "I Know a Man," solo by Mrs. Stephen Gedlinsky: "Slow and Easy," solo by Mrs. Fred Reeger: "When Yu're Alone," solo by Miss Emma Applegate: "Carry Me Back to Old Virginia," trio by Mrs. Edward Wildblood, Mrs. Henry Blickert, and Mrs. Stephen Gedlinsky: "Dardanella," solo by Mrs. Wildbood [solo not listed], and the final chorus, "Dixie Lullaby," by Mrs. Gedlinsky and company."

I hope this helps a bit. I can send a .jpg file with one of the advertisements if you'd like.