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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC00493.03 |
| From Archive Folder | Confederate war etchings |
| Title | Lincoln writing the Emancipation Proclamation |
| Date | ca. 1880-1890 |
| Author | Volck, Adalbert John (1828-1912) |
| Document Type | Artwork |
| Content Description | Depicts a menacing-looking Lincoln slumping in his chair writing the Emancipation Proclamation with his left foot sitting on top of a copy of the U.S. Constitution. Demon imagery is found throughout. The Statue of Liberty's head is covered by Lincoln's Scotch cap to simulate a baboon. Background has two paintings. One depicts the slave rebellion on Saint Domingo and the other John Brown as "St. Ossawotamie." Osawatomie is a reference to a battle at the town of Osawatomie, Kansas in August 1856 when some 250 border ruffians attacked the free-soil town. Brown defended the town with 30 men, but it was burned to the ground and his son, Frederick, was killed by a bullet through the heart. A curtain is pulled back from a window showing a flock of birds ominously flying in the distance. Size in extent is for the mount. The actual size of the etching is 20.4 x 26.2 cm. Title found in pencil on verso. |
| Subjects | Emancipation US Constitution African American History Abolition Art, Music, Theater, and Film President Emancipation Proclamation Slavery John Brown Bleeding Kansas Slave Rebellion Caribbean Civil War Presidential Speeches and Proclamations Propaganda |
| People | Volck, Adalbert John (1828-1912) |
| Place written | s.l. |
| Theme | Government & Politics; Slavery & Abolition; The American Civil War; The Presidency |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | Adalbert John Volck was a dentist, political cartoonist, and a caricaturist who sympathized with the Southern cause. During the Civil War, Volck supported the Confederacy through his satirical political cartoons. He also smuggled drugs and medical supplies for the Confederate army, and served as a personal courier to President Jefferson Davis. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |