Anarabber (ora-rabber) is a street vendor (hawker) selling fruits and vegetables from a colorful,horse-drawn cart. Once a common sight inAmerican East Coast cities, only a handful of arabbers still walk the streets ofBaltimore.[1] They rely onstreet cries to attract the attention of their customers.
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The termarabber is believed to derive from the 19th century slang term "street Arabs".[2] Arabbing began in the early 19th century when access to ships and stables made it an accessible form ofentrepreneurship.African American men entered the trade following theCivil War. Brightly painted and artfully arranged, arabber carts became a common sight on the streets of Baltimore. To alert city dwellers to their arrival, arabbers developed distinctive calls:[3]
Holler, holler, holler, till my throat get sore.
If it wasn't for the pretty girls, I wouldn't have to holler no more.
I say, Watermelon! Watermelon!
Got 'em red to the rind, lady.
DuringWorld War II, factory jobs opened to white laborers, leaving arabbing an almost entirely African-American vocation. By then, arabbing was already in decline, threatened by the expansion ofsupermarkets and the disappearance of public stables. In the later 20th century, arabbers faced additional challenges from cityzoning and vending regulations, and fromanimal rights advocates concerned about the health and welfare of the horses.
In 1994, the Arabber Preservation Society was founded to help bring Baltimore's Retreat Street stable, which had been condemned, up to city building codes.[4] The society continues to renovate and promote the preservation of the stables serving the remaining arabbers, who number fewer than a dozen. Besides providing a nostalgic glimpse of the past, arabbers still serve a practical purpose, bringing fresh produce and other goods to urban neighborhoods that areunderserved by grocery stores.
Because arabbers generally do not have complete horse-care knowledge, they have formed a working connection with PennsylvaniaOld Order Mennonites. The latter, with their rural, horse-and-carriage life-style provide the arabbers with know-how and opportunities to purchase horses.[5]
