State Historical Society of Iowa

"The Great Exhibition of 1860" Political Cartoon, 1860

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Courtesy of Library of Congress, Maurer, Louis, Currier & Ives, 1860

Description

In this cartoon, abolitionist editor Horace Greeley (left) grinds his New York "Tribune" organ as candidate Abraham Lincoln (center, riding on a wooden rail) prances to the music. Lincoln is tethered with a cord to Greeley's index finger, and his lips are padlocked shut. Lincoln and the Republicans tried to de-emphasize the slavery issue during the 1860 campaign. In the background stands William H. Seward, holding a wailing black infant. He complains, "It's no use trying to keep me and the 'Irrepressible' infant in the background; for we are really the head and front of this party." At right stand two other New York editors friendly to the Republican cause, Henry J. Raymond of the "New York Times" (a short, bearded man holding an ax) and James Watson Webb of the New York "Courier and Enquirer."

Transcript of Political Cartoon from the Election of 1860

Source Dependent Questions

  • In this cartoon, the man in the background says that "for we are really the head and front of this party." What do you think "we" means in this case? How might this relate to slavery as a cause of the Civil War?
  • In the cartoon, Abraham Lincoln, Republican candidate for president, and the Republican Party platform are being led by newspaper editor Horace Greeley. What does this imply about who the artist believed was in charge of the Republican Party?

Citation Information

Maurer, Louis, "The Great Exhibition of 1860," Currier & Ives, 1860. Courtesy of Library of Congress Courtesy of Library of Congress

State Historical Society of Iowa

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