Adelaide Neilson, from the Actresses and Celebrities series (N60, Type 2) promoting Little Beauties Cigarettes for Allen & Ginter brand tobacco products 1887

This is a promotional trade card of the actress Adelaide Neilson, made in the United States by Allen and Ginter, as part of their "Little Beauties Cigarettes" series. These cards, popular in the late 19th century, were designed to be collected and traded, functioning as miniature portraits that circulated within consumer culture. Neilson, a celebrated Shakespearean actress, is presented here in a manner that emphasizes her beauty and respectability, aligning her image with the aspirational qualities that the tobacco company sought to associate with their brand. The institutional history of this card is rooted in the rise of mass advertising and the commercialization of celebrity culture. We might ask ourselves, what was the public role of actresses at this time, and how were they being used to promote specific consumer products? Through the use of archival research we can investigate the history of marketing, advertising and how these cards reflect the social values of the time, including ideas about beauty, fame, and consumerism.