Collection inventory

Overview of the Collection
Creator:	Nast, Thomas, 1840-1902
Title:	Thomas Nast Collection
Inclusive Dates:	1862-1902
Bulk Dates:	1870-1897
Quantity:	2 linear ft.
Abstract:	6 original cartoons, 2 incoming letters, tear sheets of Nast cartoons from Harper's Weekly, and clippings about Nast and his work.
Language:	English
Repository:	Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries 222 Waverly Avenue Syracuse, NY 13244-2010 https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center

Biographical History

Thomas Nast (1840-1902) was an American cartoonist and illustrator. Nast is one the founding figures of American political cartooning. He published thousands of cartoons over the course of his prolific career and is credited with giving definitive form to many now commonplace icons like the Democratic donkey, the Republican elephant, Uncle Sam, and even the familiar version of the "American" Santa Claus.

Born in Landau, Germany, Nast was six years old when his family immigrated to America. Growing up in New York City, Nast studied art in his early teens with the painter Theodore Kaufmann and began his professional career at the age of 15 with Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper (1855). In 1862, Nast became a staff artist for Harper's Weekly, and it was the work he did for this paper during the Civil War and after that most defined his reputation. In the 1870s, Nast carried on his famous campaign against William Marcy "Boss" Tweed and the corrupt group of New York City politicians associated with Tammany Hall. His Tammany tiger and Boss Tweed caricatures had a powerful resonance with the public and quickly became part of the vernacular of American political cartooning.

Nast's career with Harper's Weekly lasted for twenty-five years, ending in 1887. Subsequently, Nast continued to publish work on a freelance basis in publications like America and Once a Week (now Collier's Weekly), and for a short period was affiliated with the Illustrated American (1891). In 1892, Nast signed-on with the New York Gazette and soon took over the enterprise, changing the name of the paper to Nast's Weekly. The paper was short lived, however, and ceased publication the following year. The failure of Nast's Weekly and other troubled investments made Thomas Nast's last years financially very difficult. He lived in semi-retirement, taking painting commissions in Europe and sending occasional cartoons for publication. Very often during these years, friends and family would receive small cartoons from Nast, in lieu of written correspondence. In 1902, Nast received a diplomatic appointment from the Theodore Roosevelt administration to serve as Consul General in Guyaquil, Ecuador. Nast accepted the post and left for Ecuador in June of that year. Shortly after arriving in Ecuador, Nast contracted yellow fever and died after a protracted illness on December 7, 1902.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Thomas Nast Collection consists of 6 original cartoons (mostly from late in his career), 2 letters to Nast, tear sheets of Nast cartoons from Harper's Weekly (1884) and various magazine and newspaper clippings about Nast and his work (mid-twentieth century).

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Arrangement of the Collection

Materials are arranged by type.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

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Related Material

Special Collections Research Center has collections of over one hundred cartoonists. Please refer to the SCRC Subject Index for a complete listing.

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Subject Headings

Persons

Associated Titles

Subjects

Places

Genres and Forms

Occupations

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Thomas Nast Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Purchased, 1966-1967.

Finding Aid Information

Created by: MD
Date: 24 Feb 2009
Revision history: 24 Feb 2009 - converted to EAD (MD); 11 Jan 2012 - box number revised (MBD)

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Inventory

	Cartoons
Oversize 1		"The Boss" [silhouette of Boss Tweed-like figure made of dollar signs] 1897
			pen and ink on illustration board, approx. 8 ¼ x 9 ½ in.
Oversize 1		"How His Dignity Faced It . . .The People Be Fooled on Tariff Reform" [Grover Cleveland with head facing backwards] 1892
			paste-overs, pen and ink on illustration board, approx. 13 ¼ x 18 in.
Oversize 1		"The Light (Weight) of the World - Alias the Jappy has Challenged the G.O.M." [Sir Edwin Arnold w/book and displaying signet ring] [handwritten Sir Edwin quote on back] 1892
			pen and ink on illustration board, approx. 14 x 21 in.
Oversize 1		"A Tammany Burr" [figure with burr-head distributing "chesnuts" at Workman's Hall] undated
			pen and ink on illustration board, approx. 7 ¾ x 10 ½ in.
Oversize 1		Untitled [Nast with hand in pocket surrounded by outstretched hands] [handwritten note on back: "Nast leaves and the rest 'get left'"] undated
			pen and ink on illustration board, approx. 7 x 10 ¼ in.
Oversize 1		Untitled [Uncle Sam on roller skates, bulky figure in top hat stands over injured skaters in background] undated
			pen and ink on illustration board, approx. 8 ½ x 10 in.

	Clippings
Oversize 2		Misc. clippings
			bundle of collected newspaper and magazine clippings about Nast and his work, culled from mid-20th Century sources.
Oversize 2		Murrell, William. "Nast, Gladiator of the Political Pencil". American Scholar, Autumn 1936 (vol. 5, no. 4): 472-485

	Correspondence
Oversize 2		Emery, John Russell 1 Sep 1870
Oversize 2		Brougham, John undated (before 1880)

	Tear sheets
Oversize 2		Harper's Weekly, 5 July 1884: 425-440 [complete issue]
Oversize 2		Harper's Weekly, 26 July 1884: 473-474, 477-492.
			features a cover by Nast and pull-out supplement with a selection of Nast's "Blaine cartoons" published between 8 March 1879 and 13 May 1882.

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