“The Flight of Abraham” (Lincoln), March 9th, 1861
Continuing our series of American Civil War cartoons, we present — on the 150th anniversary of its first publication — The Flight of Abraham, by cartoonist John McLenan. Appearing on the rear outside page of the March 9th, 1861 issue of Harper’s Weekly, this cartoon parodies how President-Elect Abraham Lincoln (on February 21-23, 1861) snuck into Washington, D.C., [...]
C.M. Coolidge’s Father’s Day, 1882
Artist Cassius Marcellus Coolidge — famed for his classic American painting, Dogs Playing Poker — a masterpiece appreciated most by fathers, created in 1882 a set of comic cards titled, I’m a Daddy, advertised in such places as the back of Harper’s Weekly, and selling for ten cents per set. Below are two advertising cards, promoting to dealers the [...]
Jay Gould, the King of the Robber Barons, Part 1
"… The King of the Robber Barons … the most Hated Man in America … a Predator and Wrecker of properties …" Descriptions of Jay Gould by historians and biographers 174 years ago today, on May 27, 1836, Jason "Jay" Gould was born in the small town of Roxbury New York. His family was poor, [...]
This Day In Arf History: Thomas Nast Dies
The creator of the republican elephant and democratic donkey, Thomas Nast can be called the father of modern political cartooning. He had the kind of influence editorial cartoonists dream of today: Nast was directly responsible for the downfall and consequent arrest of Boss Tweed, who was apprehended as he fled through Spain by authorities who [...]
This Day in Arf History: First Appearance of Republican Elephant
Heck, let me just quote the Academy of Natural Sciences on this one: “In 1874, the New York Herald printed an editorial accusing Republican President Ulysses S. Grant of “Caesarism,” in the belief that he would attempt to run for an unprecedented third term in 1876. About the same time the Herald concocted a scheme [...]
