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 Lincoln and the Republicans

 


  “Honest Old Abe Marching Forth to the White House”
  Cartoonist:  Unknown
  Source:  Wide-Awake Pictorial
  Date:   November 1, 1860, p. 1

Click to see a large version of this cartoon...

Click to see a large version of this cartoon

Complete HarpWeek Explanation:
In the 1850s, young men formed into “Wide Awake” clubs in order to promote Republican candidates. They attracted a great deal of attention by noisily marching, singing, and snake dancing in torchlight parades, and were particularly prominent touting Abraham Lincoln during the 1860 presidential campaign. They wore glazed helmets and capes to protect themselves from the oil and soot of the torches and from inclement weather. The Republican “Wide Awakes” also policed polling places in order to prevent Democratic vote fraud. Democrats organized similar groups of young men to rally the party faithful and watch for Republican vote fraud. On this cover to the November Wide-Awake Pictorial, a youthful-looking Lincoln leads a torchlight parade of the Wide-Awakes.

 

 

 

 
 

 

     
 

 

 
     
 

 

 
     
 

 

 

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