In 1864 he was with J. W. Raynor’s Company; and on September 4, 1865, he began an engagement with Hooley in Brooklyn; a year later he opened with Kelly and Leon’s Minstrels at 720 Broadway; this was the initial performance of the latter company in the metropolis. January 16, 1867, with G. W. H. Griffin, he organized Griffin and Christy’s Minstrels, opening at the Fifth Avenue Theatre (late Madison Square Theatre); they closed June 27, went on tour and reappeared in New York, July 29, at Union Hall, Fifth Avenue and Twenty-third Street; they closed on September 23 and went traveling. His last appearance was with Hooley’s Minstrels, May 2, 1868, in Brooklyn, N. Y. George Christy was born in Palmyra, N. Y., November 6, 1827; he died in New York City, May 12, 1868. [Illustration: THE VIRGINIA SERENADERS, 1843. Reading from left to right, in later years the above performers were familiarly known as Jim Sanford, “Ole Bull” Myers, Jim Carter, Bob Edwards and “Cool” White.] [Illustration: BILLY LESTER PAUL ALLEN LESTER AND ALLEN--They came later.] WILLIAM A. CHRISTY, the younger son of E. P. Christy, was a comedian, and a fair end man. His greatest proficiency was in the delineation of the female character. Late in 1860 “Christy’s” Minstrels, under his management, toured for a brief season; they closed, and on July 4, 1861, they reorganized and opened at the Athenaeum, Brooklyn, N. Y. William A. Christy died in New York City, December 8, 1862, aged 22 years. E. BYRON CHRISTY was a son of E. P. Christy; he was a comedian, and best known for his stump speeches. He played with Sanford’s Minstrels in Philadelphia in 1859, and with George Christy’s Minstrels same year, after the latter’s return from California. In 1865 “Christy’s” Minstrels made a tour under his management. He died in New York City, April 6, 1866, aged 28 years. JOE SWEENEY (Joel Walker Sweeney) was the “father of the banjo” and one of the earliest black-face performers. Mr. Sweeney and two brothers traveled in a wagon through the South in the early 30’s, and certainly as early as 1838 when he was with a circus that played in Lynchburg, Va. He played many subsequent engagements with circuses, notably with the John Robinson Show. About 1843 he went to England, where he traveled with Cook’s Circus. April 19, 1844, with Brower, Pelham and Emmett, he formed again the Virginia Minstrels; they played in Dublin two weeks, and several other cities, after which the quartette broke up; Pelham and Sweeney then performed in the principal cities of the United Kingdom, Sweeney returning to the United States about 1845. He subsequently organized Joe Sweeney’s Opera Troupe and traveled chiefly through the South at intermittent periods up to within about a year or two of his death.