To sweep the Augean Stable. For President, Andrew Jackson. For Vice-Pr...
Election ticket for Jackson delegates from various Ohio counties in the presidential contest of 1828, illustrated with an image of a straw broom. The broom, a traditional pictorial and literary symbol of reform... More
The aristocracy of color - Drawing. Public domain image.
Signed in stone: J. Cn. Title appears as it is written on the item. Forms part of: American cartoon print filing series (Library of Congress)
Soloque. Emperor of Hayti, creating a grand duke
Published & for sale by J.L. Magee, no. 34 Mott St, NY. Title appears as it is written on the item. Forms part of: American cartoon print filing series (Library of Congress)
Chevy Chase or the bank runner (how Burrows ran on the 1st of Novr. & ...
Entered according to the Act of Congress by William Kelly, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of the City of New York. Inscribed in ink above image: Depos... More
The downfall of Mother Bank - Public domain drawing
A pro-Jackson satire applauding the President's September 1833 order for the removal of federal deposits from the Bank of the United States. The combined opposition to this move from Bank president Nicholas Bid... More
A minister extraordinary taking passage & bound on a foreign mission t...
The second of two prints surrounding the scandalous trial of Methodist minister Ephraim K. Avery for the brutal murder of factory girl Sarah Maria Cornell. (See "A Very Bad Man," no. 1833-13). Contrary to Weite... More
The grand national caravan moving east. / drawn by Hassan Straightshan...
A burlesque parade, led by Andrew Jackson and satirizing various aspects of his administration. The procession moves from right to left. At its head is Jackson, seated on a horse with Martin Van Buren cross-le... More
A very bad man - Drawing. Public domain image.
The first of two prints formerly thought to be anti-Jackson satires, but actually dealing with the sensational trial of Methodist minister Ephraim K. Avery in May 1833 for the murder of Sarah Maria Cornell. (Se... More
Set to between Old Hickory and Bully Nick
Satire on the public conflict between Andrew Jackson and Nicholas Biddle over the future of the Bank of the United States, and the former's campaign to destroy it. The print is sympathetic to Jackson, portrayi... More
!["The government." No. 1, [Eye] take the responsibility](https://cache.getarchive.net/Prod/thumb/cdn4/L3Bob3RvLzE4MzQvMDEvMDEvdGhlLWdvdmVybm1lbnQtbm8tMS1leWUtdGFrZS10aGUtcmVzcG9uc2liaWxpdHktNjQwLmpwZw%3D%3D/40/30/webp "\"The government.\" No. 1, [Eye] take the responsibility")
"The government." No. 1, [Eye] take the responsibility
A satire on Andrew Jackson's "Kitchen Cabinet," the pejorative name given his informal circle of close advisors. The print appeared during the heated controversy incited by Jackson's discontinuation of federal ... More
All fours-important state of the game-the knave about to be lost
The presidential campaign of 1836 viewed as a card game by a satirist in sympathy with the Whigs. Opposing candidates Martin Van Buren (Democrat) and William Henry Harrison (Whig) face each other across a card... More
The debilitated situation of a monarchal government . . .
A pointed comparison of French and American governments, prompted by events surrounding American efforts in 1836 to force France to honor spoliation claims for American shipping losses suffered during the Napol... More
Houston, Santa Anna, and Cos - A cartoon of a group of men with skis
An imaginative portrayal (with overt propaganda value) of an event in the Texas war of independence --the surrender of Mexican commander Santa Anna and his brother-in-law General Martin Perfecto de Cos, to Amer... More
High places in government like steep rocks only accessible to eagles a...
Campaign satire predicting Whig presidential candidate William Henry Harrison's ascendancy over Democrat Martin Van Buren. In the center of the print is a mountain with a statue of George Washington, "Pater Pat... More
A gone case. A scene in Wall-Street
A comic scene representing two New York city political factions, the Whigs and the radical Democrats (or "Loco Focos"), as scuffling newsboys. The scene takes place before the half-built Customs House, where se... More
On the way to Araby! - Political cartoon, public domain image
Satire on the Jackson administration's continuing battle against the Bank of the United States. The print was specifically occasioned by the re-chartering of the Bank by the Whig-controlled Pennsylvania Legisla... More
Illustrations of the adventures of the renowned Don Quixote & his doug...
A burlesque history of the Jackson administration, with particular reference to his campaign to destroy the Bank of the United States. The narrative, in a series of twelve episodes, is based on Cervantes's "Don... More
Fifty cents. Shin plaster - Public domain scan / drawing
Another mock shinplaster (see also nos. 1837-9 and -10 above). Again the artist attributes the shortage of hard money to the successive monetary programs of presidents Jackson and Van Buren, particularly to the... More
Whig bazaar - Political cartoon, public domain image
Publd. by H.R. Robinson, 52 Cortlandt St. N-York. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1837 by H.R. Robinson, in the Clerks Office of the District Court of the United States, for the Southern Distr... More
Uncle Sam sick with la grippe - Drawing. Public domain image.
A satire attributing the dire fiscal straits of the nation to Andrew Jackson's banking policies, with specific reference to recent bank failures in New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia. The artist blames th... More
Treasury note, Washington, D.C., Political Cartoon
A parody of the often worthless fractional currencies or "shinplasters" issued by banks, businesses, and municipalities in lieu of coin. These fractional notes proliferated during the Panic of 1837 with the eme... More
Who'll have the specie - Victorian era public domain image
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1837, by H.R. Robinson, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States, of the Southern District of New York. Printed & published by H.R. Robi... More
The great Rohan & the cattle market
An obscure and bizarre satire, datable only by its incidental reference to the murder of Congressman Jonathan Cilley. (See "Scene in Washington, Sunday Feby. 25. 1838" and "The New Code of Chivalry," nos. 1838-... More
A peep into futurity, or a picture of 1841
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1838 by H.R. Robinson, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the U.S. for the Southern District of New York. Printed & published by H.R. Robinson, 52 C... More
Executive mercy/Marcy and the Bambers
An attack on New York governor William L. Marcy's controversial decision to surrender Irish fugitives John Bamber, Sr., and his son James to the British consul after their detention in New York. The Bambers, wa... More
Sub treasurers taking long steps, or The magician broke down
Entered according to Act of Congress, in 1838 by H.R. Robinson, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the U.S. for the Southern District of N.Y. Printed & published by H.R. Robinson, 52 Cortlandt & 11 ... More
Scene in Washington. Sunday Feby. 25. 1838
A caricature of James Watson Webb, prominent Whig editor of the "Morning Courier and New York Enquirer." Webb is shown parading, armed to the teeth, along Pennsylvania Avenue. He carries a sword cane, a musket,... More
Gov. Morton's grand march - Lithograph, public domain, Library of Cong...
An allegorical design on the cover of a piano-music composition dedicated to the newly elected Democratic governor of Massachusetts, Marcus Morton. The illustration's central motif is based on the state seal, s... More
Symptoms of a duel - Public domain portrait drawing
The second of two particularly well-drawn caricatures by the same artist, on the subject of the 1839 congressional probe of Van Buren's Treasury Department. (See above, nos. 1839-6 through -9.) The inquiry was ... More
Professor Wise, performing a surgical operation in Congress Hall
Representative Henry A. Wise, vociferous opponent of the Van Buren administration, is portrayed as a surgeon, operating on Treasury Secretary Levi Woodbury. The satire refers to the cross-examination of Woodbur... More
Seventh ward beggars - Political cartoon, public domain image
Print shows President Andrew Jackson holding a kingly scepter and a bag containing $100,000. He sits upon bundles, presumably containing money, labeled "Surplus Fund". Two bankers kiss his feet, while several o... More
Called to account, Washington, D.C., Political Cartoon
Once more the House of Representatives investigation of Treasury practices under the Van Buren administration in connection with the Swartwout embezzlement scandal. (See above nos. 1839-6 through -9.) The print... More
Animal magnetism - A cartoon of a man sitting in a chair talking to an...
A swipe at President Van Buren's independent treasury system and his continuation of the monetary policies of predecessor Andrew Jackson. The artist, clearly in sympathy with the Whigs, links corruption in the ... More
This is the house that Jack built
The Van Buren administration's record, particularly with regard to the handling of public finances, is condemned as corrupt and a perpetuation of unpopular Jacksonian policies. The artist echoes perennial Whig ... More
Caricature, An interesting family, public domain cartoon image
A caricature of Martin Van Buren as an opossum. The marsupial, with a smirking Van Buren's head, rises on its hindquarters and displays in its pouch three of its "young." They are administration insiders (left... More
O.K. - Political cartoon, public domain image
A postelection Whig satire, "Respectfully dedicated to the members of the Eighth Ward Tippecanoe Club and inscribed to their Patriotic Chairman Charles H. Delavan, Esqr." The artist shows a crowd of Whigs assem... More
The new era Whig trap sprung - Public domain scan / drawing
Democratic efforts to reelect Martin Van Buren are portrayed as hopeless in the face of broad popular support for Whig candidate William Henry Harrison. Here one of Harrison's campaign emblems, a log cabin, is ... More
The new era or the effects of a standing army
A condemnation of a Van Buren administration plan, put forward by Secretary of War Joel Poinsett, to reform the militia system through creation of a reserve force under regular army officers. The idea was attac... More
Democratic simplicity or the arrival of our favourite son
A satirical attack on alleged excesses in the Van Buren administration and on the President's Loco Foco or radical Democratic supporters in New York. Martin Van Buren rides past New York's Tammany Hall in a lu... More
Baltimore Convention, Old Tippecanoe, a patriotic song
An illustrated sheet music cover for a "Patriotic Song. Written, to be sung at Baltimore during the Young Men's Whig Convention" of May 1840. The composer is identified as "a Pennsylvanian." The illustration, l... More
The little magician's sleight of hand performance. An absquabulating s...
Again the theme of corruption in the Van Buren administration, here centering on the President's "Sub-Treasury" or independent treasury program, passed by Congress in July 1840. A large frigate "United States,... More
Black C.C. or the three Judas's
The cartoon pertains to some instance of corruption in the Van Buren administration. Van Buren shovels coins from a great pile into a bag held by a man (probably a federal judge), who urges him, "Matty fill up... More
Fanny Ellsler's last seranade or the soap-locks disgraceful attack upo...
A riot scene: German parade musicians (possibly accompanying touring ballerina Fanny Elssler) are attacked and beaten with their own instruments by a gang of toughs (or "Soap-Locks" for the long, soaped hair lo... More
Fanny Elssler and the Baltimoreans, Political Cartoon
A scornful look at the reception of German ballerina Fanny Elssler in Baltimore. The New York artist ridicules the adulation given the touring performer by the Baltimore public. During her July 1840 visit there... More
Granny Harrison delivering the country of the executive Federalist
A satire on the Van Buren administration challenged by Whig presidential candidate William Henry Harrison. Harrison, dressed as a woman, tries to remove Van Buren from his throne with a midwife's forceps. Van... More
Trouble in the Spartan ranks. Old Durham in the field
A complex and somewhat obscure satire celebrating the defeat of Dorrite Democrats in the Rhode Island state elections of spring 1843. The canvass was held the year following the successful suppression of the Do... More
The two bridges - Political cartoon, public domain image
As in "Texas Coming In" (no. 1844-28), a bridge over Salt River is the central motif, making the difference between the Whigs' successful crossing to the "Presidential Chair" and the disastrous route taken by t... More
Progress of reform!!! No. 1 - Political cartoon, public domain image
A scene in New York, outside the gates of City Hall Park. Two well-dressed men with top hats overturn the table of two apple-women. One of the men (from all appearances a Loco Foco radical Democrat) shouts at t... More
Jamie & the bishop - Political cartoon, public domain image
One of James Gordon Bennett's perennial editorial campaigns against the Catholic bishop of New York John Hughes is the subject of "Jamie & the Bishop." On the left Scottish-born "Jamie" Bennett, a quill pen beh... More
Not a drum was heard nor a funeral note . . .
The erosion of Democratic support for presidential hopeful Martin Van Buren is portrayed as the funeral of "the Kinderhook fox." The print was deposited for copyright on May 22, 1844, one week before the Democr... More
Virtuous Harry, or set a thief to catch a thief!
A satire on the Whig party's anti-annexation platform. The question of whether or not to annex Texas was a large issue separating candidates in the 1844 campaign. Annexation's serious implications for the futur... More
Footrace, Pennsylvania Avenue. Stakes $25,000, Political Cartoon
The race for a $25,000 prize (the president's salary) is a metaphor for the 1844 campaign. The favored contender here is Henry Clay. The other runners are James K. Polk and John Tyler, while commentaries are of... More
Uncle Sam and his servants - Political cartoon, public domain image
An anti-Tyler satire, lampooning the incumbent's efforts to secure a second term against challengers Henry Clay and James Polk. With his shoulder to the door Tyler bars the entry of (left to right) John C. Cal... More
Matty meeting the Texas question, Political Cartoon
A satire on the Democrats' approach to the delicate question of the annexation of Texas. In marked contrast to his portrayal of the issue as a beautiful woman in "Virtuous Harry" (no. 1844-27), the artist here ... More
The American Marseillaise, or voice of the people
An illustrated sheet music cover for a Whig campaign song, "The American Marseillaise," composed by Benjamin Cahill to mark the July 4, 1844, Boston Clay rally. In keeping with the title and the occasion of the... More
Governors race in New Jersey. Young Hyson riding over the backs of the...
A satire on the New Jersey gubernatorial campaign of 1844, centering on a major issue of the race--extension of the Camden and Amboy Railroad. The Whig candidate, New Jersey native Charles C. Stratton, campaign... More
Patent Democratic Republican steam shaving shop
A cryptic satire possibly dealing with some facet of the 1844 presidential campaign. The print features two unsuccessful aspirants for the Democratic presidential nomination: Martin Van Buren and Richard M. Joh... More
The Massachusetts hoar, outwitted, or hopping-John, and Johnny-cake, f...
An imaginative but puzzling commentary on sectional tensions over slavery between New England abolitionists and southern agrarian slaveholders. In his sweeping satire the artist also portrays a considerable hos... More
On to the charge! Inscribed to the memory of Major Ringgold . . .
An illustrated sheet music cover for a song memorializing one of the first heroes of the Mexican War, Maj. Samuel Ringgold. Zachary Taylor's innovative gunnery commander was fatally wounded in May 1846 during t... More
Polk's dream Historic map, Library of Congress
Here Clay is critical of James K. Polk's public advocacy of the 54.40 parallel as the northern boundary of American territory in Oregon. The cartoon also alludes to widespread uncertainty as to the course the ... More
Political Jesuitism--or interest versus principle
A virulent attack on Vice-President George M. Dallas, charging the former Pennsylvania attorney and senator with duplicity in his stand on the tariff of 1846. "Jesuitism" was a strong contemporary term for dece... More
Funeral obsequies of free-trade, Political Cartoon
A gloomy view of the effects of the Polk administration's Tariff of 1846. The artist echoes Whig condemnation of the measure as adverse to American trade. A funeral cortege, composed of administration supporter... More
Volunteers for Texas. As you were
A scornful portrayal of the poor caliber of American volunteers for the Mexican War. The print evidently appeared at the outset of the conflict, as the Library's impression was deposited for copyright on May 13... More
Who's dat knockin' at de door? - Political cartoon, public domain imag...
Signed in plate: Hinckley. Title appears as it is written on the item. Forms part of: American cartoon print filing series (Library of Congress)
Cass & his cabinet in 1849 - Political cartoon, public domain image
The satire imputes to the Democrats of 1848, led by candidate Lewis Cass, the corrupt practices of the Van Buren-era party. The artist also criticizes Whig repudiation of stalwart party leader Henry Clay in fav... More
Knock'd into a cock'd hat - Public domain scan / print
Zachary Taylor's presidential nomination at the Whig national convention in Philadelphia on June 9, 1848, is represented as a severe blow to Lewis Cass, nominated by the Democrats a few weeks earlier. The extre... More
The strife, between an old hunker, a barnburner and a no party man
A particularly well-drawn satire on the three major presidential contenders for 1848, (left to right) Zachary Taylor, Martin Van Buren and Lewis Cass. Of the three the artist seems to favor Van Buren, the "Barn... More
The Democratic funeral of 1848 - Political cartoon, public domain imag...
Foreseeing political death for the Democrats in the election, the artist imagines a funeral of the party's standard-bearers with a procession of the faithful. Democratic senators (left to right) Sam Houston of ... More
The liberty chariot - Political cartoon, public domain image
A burlesque triumphal procession representing victory for the Democratic platform in the election of 1848. In a chariot drawn by Democrats Lewis Cass and William O. Butler (shown as two horses), Uncle Sam drive... More
Whig harmony - Political cartoon, public domain image
A severe split within the Whig ranks, between partisans of Henry Clay and those of Zachary Taylor, preceded the party's convention in June 1848. Here Horace Greeley, one of Clay's most influential northern supp... More
Questioning a candidate - Political cartoon, public domain image
Zachary Taylor's stubborn resistance to declaring his views on the major political issues during his candidacy in the 1848 presidential campaign was a favorite theme of the opposition. Here Taylor, in uniform, ... More
Hunting Indians in Florida with blood hounds
A tableau dramatizing the brutal tactics employed by Zachary Taylor as commander of U.S. forces against the Seminole Indians during the Second Seminole War (1835-42). Taylor, on horseback at right, presides ov... More
"Principles, not men." The Democratic candidates for President and Vic...
A large, banner-style campaign poster for the 1848 Democratic ticket. Bust portraits of the two candidates, Cass and Butler, are framed by oak leaves and acorns, symbols of the Democratic party. Above the portr... More
Smoking him out - Political cartoon, public domain image
A humorous commentary on Barnburner Democrat Martin Van Buren's opposition to regular Democratic party nominee Lewis Cass. Van Buren and his son John were active in the Free Soil effort to prevent the extensio... More
The telegraphic candidates - Steam locomotive, Public domain image
In a race between the railroad and the telegraph the "telegraphic candidates," Lewis Cass and William O. Butler, are first to the White House. The artist ridicules Zachary Taylor for his hazy stance on major ca... More
Grand Presidential sweep-stakes for 1849
The Free Soil sympathies of the cartoonist are evident in his portrayal of the 1848 presidential contest as a race between the three major candidates. The contenders are on the course. Whig candidate Zachary T... More
Genl. Lopez the Cuban patriot getting his cash
A satiric portrait of Venezuelan-born general Narciso Lopez, leader of an 1850 expedition to liberate Cuba from Spanish rule. Lopez's army of American volunteers captured the Cuban coastal town of Cardenas in ... More
Scene in Uncle Sam's Senate. 17th April 1850
A somewhat tongue-in-cheek dramatization of the moment during the heated debate in the Senate over the admission of California as a free state when Mississippi senator Henry S. Foote drew a pistol on Thomas Har... More
Gov. Seabrook's quick step - Lithograph, public domain, Library of Con...
A sheet music cover illustrated with an allegorical vignette incorporating the arms of the state of South Carolina. The quickstep was composed by Geo. F. Cole for the Washington Light Infantry and dedicated by ... More
The flag of our union, a national song
Another copy, slightly different image was deposited for copyright on May 21, 1851 (M1 .A13 W; LC-USZ62-91835). Caption card tracings: Shelf. Copyright by William Hall & Son; lithograph by H. Hoff, N.Y. LOT sub... More
The sad parting between two old friends
Senators Thomas Hart Benton and Henry S. Foote are paired here in a facetious farewell scene, as Benton departs the "Shop of the Senate." In reality Benton lost his Senate seat in a January 1851 election, large... More
Halloo! Turks in Gotham - Drawing. Public domain image.
Signed in stone: WA. Title appears as it is written on the item. Purchase (Hubbard Fund); (DLC/PP-1976:041). Forms part of: American cartoon print filing series (Library of Congress)
What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander
The opposition of Northern abolitionists, churchmen, and political figures to enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 is criticized in this rare pro-Southern cartoon. In two panels artist Edward Williams ... More
The apotheosis - Drawing. Public domain image.
The print is a fragment of a larger lithograph entitled "Invasion of Cuba," composed of two panels, applauding American "filibustering" expeditions to liberate Cuba from Spain. (See also "The Great Naval Blocka... More
The blessings of liberty or how to "hook" a "gentleman of color"
A diverse group of abolitionists try to drag an unwilling black man toward the left with a large gaff hook. Holding the hook are (left to right) an old hag, a Quaker man, and two other homely men. The hag dec... More
The flag of our union, a national song
A patriotic allegory illustrating the cover of sheet music for a song composed by William Vincent Wallace with words by George P. Morris. The theme of the indissoluble union of North and South is evoked here, ... More
The national union - Lithograph, public domain, Library of Congress
A patriotic, illustrated sheet music cover for a song composed by Charles Collins, Jr., and dedicated to Kentucky senator Henry Clay. The work celebrates Clay's efforts to preserve the Union, and was a product ... More
Columbia and her rejected suitor, Political Cartoon
A fond yet sardonic tribute to the aging Massachusetts statesman Daniel Webster, whose final bid for the Whig presidential nomination was defeated by Winfield Scott in 1852. The artist is wryly critical of the... More
A magnificent offer to a magnificent officer
A cartoon ridiculing Whig nominee Winfield Scott as the pawn of New York antislavery senator William Seward. A member of the "Whig Committee" kneels before Scott and offers him a crown and a bag of money marked... More
The game-cock & the goose - Political cartoon, public domain image
A pro-Whig cartoon showing rival candidates Winfield Scott and Franklin Pierce in a race for the presidency in 1852 before an audience of animated spectators. Scott, in uniform and looking uncharacteristically... More
The gladiators of the Senate! The bulley's of the House
The artist parodies recent outbreaks of violence in Congress, and offers a pointed comparison between the elevated rhetorical sparring in the Senate and a more physical brand of combat in the House of Represent... More
The poor soldier & his ticket for soup
The presidential aspirations of Whig general Winfield Scott during the 1852 election are again belittled. Scott, in a tattered uniform and supporting himself on a crutch, extends his feathered cap toward the fi... More
Loco Foco candidates travelling, on the canel system
Several prospective Democratic presidential candidates travel along a canal in the "Salt River Barge," named after the proverbial river of political defeat. The passengers are (left to right): Lewis Cass, secre... More
Scene in a New Hampshire court.--General Pierce examining a witness. S...
Two humorous incidents supposedly from the life of Franklin Pierce. On the left, a repartee wherein Pierce, the distinguished trial lawyer, is embarrassed by an ignorant witness. Armed with pages of notes, Pie... More
Two candidates at the door of nomination
A satire on the competition between Daniel Webster and Winfield Scott for the 1852 Whig nomination for the presidency. In the drawing, the candidates stand on opposite sides of a door, Scott on the left and Web... More
Loco Foco hunters treeing a candidate
A satire on the Democrats' or "Loco Focos'" 1852 pursuit of Franklin Pierce for the presidential nomination. At the foot of the White Mountains in the "Dismal Swamp," an immense, swampy region of North Carolina... More
Ornithology - Engraving, Public domain image, Political Cartoon
A mild election-year cartoon portraying Whig presidential candidate Winfield Scott (left) as a turkey and Democrat Franklin Pierce (right) as a gamecock. The two face each other from opposite sides of "Mason &... More
A dish of "black turtle" - Political cartoon, public domain image
The cartoonist mocks the opportunism evident in Winfield Scott's endorsement of both the abolitionist cause and the Missouri Compromise. Scott, in military uniform, is seated at a table with a plate of soup be... More
Quartette from the new opera of the "Whig celebration at Lundy's Lane....
Winfield Scott's controversial performance as commander in the War of 1812 battle at Lundy's Lane turned to account by the artist in this parody of the general's candidacy in 1852. The battle of Lundy's Lane ag... More
Harmony in the wigwam! Democracy of the right brand-y
A comic scene ridiculing the Tammany Democrats of New York City. Tammany headquarters, known as the "Wigwam," here erupts in a drunken fracas over the Democratic platform for the presidential race of 1852. The ... More