Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (also snow-cone) a black person (cf. snowflake n.¹ ) [a humourless joc. reversal].

1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
[1801		Sporting Mag. Mar. XVII 285/1: The five winning dogs were [...] Major Topham’s black dog Snowdrop, a son of Snowball. Mr. Best’s black bitch Young Snowball, a daughter of ditto].
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1815		‘No Slave Trade’ in Vocal Mag. 2 Jan. 20: Den dey call me Snowball Lilly, / Tap my cheek and say how do?
1819		‘One of the Fancy’ Tom Crib’s Memorial to Congress 45: Lily-whites, (or Snowballs) Negroes.
[1828		Sussex Advertiser 14 Apr. 4/3: He was dressed in a blue coat, and [...] was accompanied by Tom Spring and Snowball].
1831		Navy at Home II 151: ‘What,’ said he, ‘a snow-ball — d— n’t, we’ve got one already, but let's have a look at him.
1832		Ely’s Hawk & Buzzard (NY) Sept. 29 n.p.: That snow-ball of yours, he shall be lob-lolly boy.
1833		‘Black John’ in Out-and-Outer in Spedding & Watt (eds) Bawdy Songbooks (2011) IV 145: This lady so kind unto Snow-ba[ll] would be, / That she’d asked him to keep her back warm, d’ye see, / Which the blackey agreed to do ev’ry night.
1836		T. Haliburton Clockmaker I 165: I give January Snow, the old nigger, a nidge with my elbow [...] ‘Bend down that ash saplin softly, you old Snowball, and make no noise.’.
1844		‘Jonathan Slick’ High Life in N.Y. II 117: ‘Look you here, you snow-ball,’ sez I [...] ‘Now look a here, cuffy!’.
1848		Bartlett Dict. Americanisms 318: snowball. A jeering appellation for a negro.
1851		Bell’s Life in Sydney 1 Mar. 2/4: Grand Mill between Hardware Dick the Birmingham Trump and Massa Snowball, alias the Sydney Douglas, for £100 a-side.
1857		D. Jerrold St Giles and St James I 60: Then other pretty terms, such as ‘snowball,’ ‘powder-puff,’ were hurled at Cesar, who sat and grinned in helpless anger.
1862		Capt. Clutterbuck’s Champagne 138: A black soldier now appeared, answering to the name of Snowball Snooks.
1878		H.B. Stowe Poganuc People 155: Old snowball is on his high heels this morning—got a suit of the colonel’s old uniform.
1890		Times (Philadelphia, PA) 22 Sept. 6/2: The cat was abducted by young ‘Snowball,’ the boot-black.
1905–07		Bawdy N.Y. State MS. 4: A while ago Mose Snowball applied to the Pullman Company for a position as porter on a sleeping car.
1909		L.W. Payne Jr ‘Word-List From East Alabama’ in DN III:v 372: snowball, n. A common appellation for a very black negro.
1909		Sun. Times (Perth, WA) Supp. 19 Dec. 25/5: Why the hell didn’t they tell me before that this Snowball was a coon?
1929		A.J. Barr Let Tomorrow Come 41: These snowballs out here’s too big for me.
1936		K. Mackenzie Living Rough 242: I looked around and standing there was Snowball Bates [...] He’s a big buck nigger.
1944		Mencken ‘Designations for Colored Folk’ in AS XIX:3 174: The DAE does not list such vulgar synonyms for Negro as [...] snowball.
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn) 216: snow ball [...] a very light negro.
1957		D. Niland Call Me When the Cross Turns Over (1958) 185: He was an abo. Snowball didn’t know Tuesday from Wednesday.
1960		P. Oliver Blues Fell this Morning 80: Contemptuous terms that have long been used [...] ‘snowball’.
1983		(con. 1780) I.L. Allen Lang. of Ethnic Conflict 47: Color Allusions, Other than ‘Black’ and ‘Negro’: […] snowball [1780. A deliberate paradox. Cf. lily-white. Recent variants are snow-cone, snow-flake.
1984		W.J. Caunitz One Police Plaza 174: Remember that night with the snowball?
1992		(con. 1920s) F.M. Davis Livin’ the Blues 53: They’d make loud cracks about ‘niggers,’ [...] ‘Sambo,’ or ‘Snowball’.

2. (also snowdrop) as a (derog.) term of address.

1821		W.T. Moncrieff Tom and Jerry III iii: log.: I’ll gin him a little, my Snow-ball. [...] bob: ‘Snow-ball,’ – come, let’s have none o’ your sinnywations, Mister Baranacles; she’s none the vurser, though she is a little blackish or so!
1828		N.-Y. Enquirer 29 Feb. 2/1–2: The poor negro seemed overwhelmed with astonishment. The sailor replied, ‘What, ain’t it enough — well Snowball I can’t give you any more now — be here at 12 o’clock tomorrow.’.
1832		J. Miller Complete Jest Book 156: How d’ye do, blackee – how do, Snowball!
1833		M. Scott Tom Cringle’s Log (1862) 221: ‘I say, Snowdrop,’ said the sergeant [...] he approached Snowdrop with his cane raised in act to strike. ‘Top massa,’ shouted the negro.
1842		S. Lover Handy Andy 335: The sweep was passing by, and I called him ‘snow-ball’.
1844		New Sporting Mag. (London) Dec. 7: [to a man who has fallen into a muddy ditch] ‘Holloa, Snowball! [...] vy, you’re as black as the vhite of my eye’.
c.1850		F.M. Whitcher Widow Bedott Papers (1883) 45: The the little nigger comes in [...] ‘here, Snowball, take it hum and tell Miss Grimes ’twouldent be right to take off none on’t’.
1873		J. O’Connor Wanderings of a Vagabond 304: He rang a hand-bell which was upon the table, and it was answered by a big greasy looking negro. ‘Breakfast for two, Snowball!’ ‘Y-a-a-s, sir,’ responded Snowball, standing as rigid as a post.
1877		Launceston Wkly News 1 Sept. 3/3: ‘[O]ne on us we call Snowdrop, ’cos he’s as black as an Ingian’.
1888		W.B. Churchward Blackbirding In The South Pacific 26: The man laughed and answered, ‘Snowball!’.
1900		F.P. Dunne Mr Dooley’s Philosophy 219: ‘What ar-re ye goin’ to do f’r ye’ersilf, Snowball,’ says I — [...] I called him ‘Snowball,’ him bein’ as black as coal, d’ye see.
1915		M.G. Hayden ‘Terms Of Disparagement’ in DN IV:iii 210: snowball, jeering appellation for a negro. ‘Let Snow-ball shine your shoes.’.
1925		G.H. Mullin Adventures of a Scholar Tramp 17: ‘Look here, Snowball,’ he remonstrated.
1969		‘Iceberg Slim’ Pimp 54: Well Snowball, you must have had your rabbit’s foot.

3. (US/W.I.) an ice-cream cornet or an iced confection; thus snowball cart n.

1935		E. Anderson Hungry Men 213: Three children stood around the penny-snowball cart waiting for the vendor to fill cones.
1966		(con. 1940s) L. Bennett ‘Victory’ in Jamaica Labrish 106: Limousine an choogoo-choogoo, Snow-ball cart and higgla shop!
1967		M. Anthony Green Days by River 70: There was a huge ice-box with an ice-shaver on top of it, where Freddie probably made press, and snowballs, and maybe even icecream.
1989		C. Hyatt When Me Was A Boy 18: Nice! When yuh bite yuh warm crus’ an yuh suck yuh cold snowball.
2006		R. Antoni Carnival 165: Rachael stopped a boy passing with a snowball cart, and asked for one without syrup.

4. (US gay) a black homosexual.

1980

Maledicta IV:2 (Winter) 228: Miss Mabel, Prissy, Butterfly [...] and Snowball, all for a Sheena = black queen (from the comic-book Sheena, Queen of the Jungle).