cigar-store Indian

[ si-gahr-stawr, -stohr ]

/ sɪˈgɑrˌstɔr, -ˌstoʊr /

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noun

a wooden statue of an American Indian, traditionally displayed at the entrance of cigar stores.

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Origin of cigar-store Indian

First recorded in 1925–30

Here they are semi-touching at a grocery store; she likes kombucha.
All Your Internet Boyfriends Are Taken: Gosling, Cumberbatch, and now Joseph Gordon-Levitt|Melissa Leon|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He was born in an apartment above the grocery store owned by his immigrant parents in South Jamaica, Queens.
Mario Cuomo, a Frustrating Hero to Democrats, Is Dead at 82|Eleanor Clift|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The state also elected Republican Nikki Haley, an Indian-American, as governor.
Steve Scalise Shows There’s a Fine Line Between Confederate & Southern|Lloyd Green|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Along the way, Brinsley turned into a drug store, but it is not clear whether he bought anything.
Exclusive: Inside a Cop-Killer’s Final Hours|Michael Daly|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST

They castigated the captain, a 48-year-old Indonesian, and his rookie copilot, a 24-year-old Indian.
Who Will Get AsiaAir 8501’s Black Boxes?|Clive Irving|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Alessandro turned a grateful look on Ramona as he translated this speech, so in unison with Indian modes of thought and feeling.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
The doors (Indian bungalows have hardly any windows, each door being half glass) were open front and back.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
The young men gathered round him and offered him a cigar, which he accepted and began to smoke.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
Had not this Indian plant been discovered, the whole history of some portions of America would have been far different.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
The Indian turned his head, and spoke to some one behind; one after another a score of figures rose.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson