[Ads-l] Very Small Antedating of "Dixie"

[Shapiro, Fred]

Barry Popik and Jonathan Lighter have done magnificent etymological research on the word "Dixie," connecting it to the name of a children's game and to the "Mason-Dixon Line."  Here is a tiny (one-day) antedating of the OED's entry for "Dixie" meaning the Southern United States:

Dixie (OED 1959 [4 Apr.])

1859 New York Herald 3 Apr. 7/5 (Newspapers.com)

BRYANT'S MINSTRELS. ... DIXIE'S LAND, another new Plantation Festival.

Fred Shapiro

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