Native American Portrayals in Crockett Almanacs, 1830s - 1850s
WARNING: The below 19th century cartoons contain racist imagery and slurs.
November is Native American History Month. As per last year, we’ll present a posting on this topic, each week this month. This year, we open with a few sample illustrations found in the (Davy) Crockett Almanac series published in the 1830s thru 1850s. These images show how popular media depicted Native Americans to the immigrant white population invading Native lands, both creating and reinforcing the de-humaning view that Native Americans were inferior, uncivilized savages — an attitude necessary for a society bent upon fulfilling its “Manifest Destiny” to make itself powerful by destroying & stealing from the native populations.
Above — Dreadful Massacre of the Whites by Indians!! — from the rear cover of the 1841 Crockett Almanac. Below left, Davy Crockett, on the front cover of the Improved 1842 Crockett Almanac. Below right, Crockett Rescuing a Captive (white) Girl (from an “Injin”), from the Crockett Almanac for 1850.
 |
 |
Above, The Indian, Crockett and the Boa Constrictor, from the rear cover of 1843′s Crockett Almanac. Below, a non-racist (albeit far-fetched) depiction, of An Indian Hunter, Riding on a Tame Buffalo, Attacked by a California Tiger, found on the back cover of an 1852 Crockett Almanac.
|
Above left, from Crockett Almanac for 1850, The Ungrateful Indian, in which Crockett’s admirers are assured that, “No human ever hated an Injin more than Davy Crockett. I never could bear the pesky red-skins any more than any varmint of the forest.”. In real life, Congressman Crockett committed political suicide in his principled stance opposing the 1830 Indian Removal Act.
A Single Combat, above right, is from the 1848 Crockett Almanac. And below, Adventure with the Indians and Mud Turtles, from 1839′s Crockett Almanac.
To view prior Native American History postings, click here. More, next week.
NativeAmericanHistory
— Doug
