The Past in the Present: Election Day
As evidenced in this 1798 cartoon, politcs in America have always been contentious. To mark Election Day the MHS offers a retrospective of items from our blog and across our website related to American electoral history.
From the Beehive:
Terrorism No New Topic to Presidential Elections (6 November 2012)
“The Inveteracy of Party Spirit is however indeed allarming at present.”: Press and Partisanship in the Election of 1796 (31 October 2012)
Historian Ray Raphael on that Flummoxing Electoral College (28 September 2012)
Election Days Past (2 Nov 2010)
Our Newest Arrival: Abigail Adams on Election of 1800 (27 May 2010)
From Collections Online:
Leverett Saltonstall and the Election of 1876
The American Party (the Know-Nothing Party) comes to power in Massachusetts in 1855
The Gerry-Mander. A new species of Monster which appeared in Essex South District in Jan. 1812
GOP campaign mugs of Richard M. Nixon and Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. (Just for fun.)
And with all the attention political ads have given to female voters in this year, it seemed appropriate to point back to Massachusetts Woman Suffrage Victory Parade : Instructions for Marchers.
The image above is "Congressional Pugilists”, a political cartoon depicting Matthew Lyon fighting with a federalist opponent on the floor of Congress early in 1798.
Hive Home
Recent Posts
- Three Centuries of Molasses in Massachusetts
- This Week @ MHS
- Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch, #19
- This Week @ MHS
- The MHS Tweets!
- An Adams New Year’s Reflection
- Commemorating the Emancipation Proclamation
- The 1811 Richmond Theater Fire
- Happy Holidays from the MHS
- Experiments in Historical Libations
- Making History @ MHS
- When Adams Met Lincoln
- This Week @ MHS
- Immigrants Not Such a “Problem” in 1914 Report
- This Week @ MHS
Beehive Series
- Around MHS
- Around the Neighborhood
- Blog Info
- Civil War
- Collection Profiles
- Collections News
- Education Programs
- Exhibitions News
- From Our Collections
- From the Reading Room
- From the Reference Librarian
- MHS in the News
- On Loan
- Readers Relate
- Reading the Proceedings
- Recent Events
- Research Published
- Today @MHS
Archives
- January 2013 (5)
- December 2012 (10)
- November 2012 (11)
- October 2012 (9)
- September 2012 (11)
- August 2012 (15)
- July 2012 (9)
- June 2012 (10)
- May 2012 (9)
- April 2012 (14)
- complete archives
For questions, comments, and suggestions,
email the beekeeper
subscribe
Comments
Nov 6, 2012, 12:28 pm
Margaret
Can you tell us what the text is, above and below? Great image.
Nov 6, 2012, 3:24 pm
Elaine
Thank you Margaret. An excellent observation. As best as I can make it out, the text at the top of the page reads (across from left to right):
1 Jona[than] Dayton. Speaker Congressional Pugilists. 2 Jona[than] W. Condy. Clerk
Across the bottom (left to right) with the multi-line verses grouped to make it easier to read:
He in a trice struck Lyon thrice
Upon his head, enrag'd sir.
Who seized the tongs to ease his wrongs,
And Griswold thus engag'd, sir.
Congress Hall.
in Philad[elphi]a Feb.15.1798
S.E. Cor. 6th & Chestnut St.
Also, along the left side:
3 Rev Ashbel Green, Chaplain
The numbers refer to the man in the large chair (1), the man standing in front of the chair holding a pen (2), and the face in profile in the lower left hand corner (3)
Commenting has closed for this post. Thank you for participating.