Uncle Sam Welcomes the Whole World to the Greatest Show on Earth, by Victor Gillam, Judge, 1893 May 6

Item — Box: 1, Folder: 32

Staff Only

Scope and Content:

From the Collection: The Helen Farr Sloan’s political cartoon collection (1802-1950) contains a variety of prints of political cartoons, illustrations, and caricatures from several different magazines. The collection contains pages from magazines, pages from books, and other prints that were not a part of a publication. The magazines featured include Puck, Judge, Vanity Fair (British, 1868-1914), Vanity Fair (American, 1913-1936), Harper’s Weekly, Gil Blas, Le Charivari, Truth, The New Yorker, The Illustrated London News, The New York Herald, and The Sun. There are other series included like Treagar’s Black Jokes and Le Gens de Paris. There are works from publishers like S.W. Fores, Currier & Ives, and J.Sidebotham. Also included are works by Rowlandson, which are individually published.

The first series contains cartoons from Puck magazine. Its materials are pages and covers from the magazine including the fronts and backs of the pages. The artists that are included are Frederick Burr Opper, Frederich Graetz, Bernhard Gillam, J.S. Pughe, James Albert Wales, and Samuel Ehrhart.

The second series contains cartoons from Judge magazine. The materials are pages and covers from the magazine and include both the fronts and backs of the pages. The artists that are included are Thomas Worth, Bernhard Gillam, Victor Gillam, and Grant E. Hamilton.

The third series contains cartoons, caricatures, and portraits from Vanity Fair (British, 1868-1914) and Vanity Fair (American, 1913-1936) magazines. The materials for the British magazine include the one-sided caricatures and cartoons featured in the publication. The material for the American magazine contains a portrait on the front and a table of contents on the back of the page. The artists that are included are Carlo Pellegrini (Ape/Singe), James Tissot (Coïdé), Thomas Nast, Leslie Ward (Spy), and William Henry Cotton.

The fourth series contains cartoons from Harper’s Weekly magazine. The materials include the front and back side of pages from the magazine. The artists that are included are William L. Sheppard, Charles G. Bush, Thomas Nast, and A.B. Frost.

The fifth series contains cartoons, caricatures, and illustrations from various magazines and publications. The artists and their publications include Théophile Steinlin, from Gil Blas, Sulpice Guillaume Chevalier (Paul Gavarni), from Le Gens de Paris, Thomas Rowlandson, William Summers, from Tregear’s Black Jokes, Charles Williams, William Elmes, George Cruikshank, Isaac Robert Cruikshank, Jules Joseph Georges Renard (Draner), Charles Robinson, from The Illustrated London News, Thomas Worth, Richard F. Outcault, from the New York Herald, Helen E. Hokinson, from The New Yorker, Charles Amédée de Noé (Cham), from Le Charivari, Sydney B. Griffin, from Truth, Oscar Cesare, from The Sun, and William Bruns.

There are a wide variety of themes and events covered in the cartoons and illustrations throughout the collection. There are numerous presidential elections covered including the elections of 1806, 1880, 1884, 1888, 1892, and 1900. The 43rd and 54th Congresses are both represented within cartoons in the series. Other events that are shown in cartoons in the collection are the Chicago World’s Fair/World’s Columbian Exposition, the Spanish-American War, Reconstruction, and the Kansas Exodus. There are also many representations of the Democratic, Republican, Greenback, and Citizens parties as well as Tammany Hall. Other themes included are immigration, Jewish communities, social ambition, weather problems, voting rights, the gold standard vs. free silver debate, diseases, family roles, plantations, white supremacy groups, Communism, financial issues, militaries, pic-nic societies, King George IV’s court, political corruption, and social events and issues. A large number of the cartoons included in the collections are products of their times and therefore many include racist language and depictions. The transcriptions and metadata associated with each cartoon is described as is for the purpose of providing the easiest access to the collection and does in no way reflect the views of Wilkes University or its archive department.

Dates

Created: 1893 May 6

Creator

Gillam, Victor, 1858-1920 (Person)

Access:

Anyone may access these political cartoons.

Extent

1 items

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Additional Description

Type of Material:

Political cartoon

Condition Note:

Fair. The material has some yellowing.

Measurements:

20.2 x 13 in

Title:

Uncle Sam Welcomes The Whole World To The Greatest Show On Earth

Description:

This cartoon by Victor Gillam for Judge magazine depicts a scene of a boat entering a port. The cartoon is commenting on the World’s Fair in Chicago in 1893 and those who attended. Gilliam may be also commenting that Judge is what brought other countries to it, with a Judge representative bringing the ship in. Gilliam has made other cartoons on the Chicago World’s Fair. The boat is a large wooden ship decorated in flower garland and pink ribbons across the sail and sides of the ship. It is being pulled in by a tiny steamboat that is being driven by a man in a blue sailor outfit that is labeled “Judge” and hat. On board the ship are personifications of different countries. On the front is John Bull wearing his usually red coat, white pants, and black top hat. He is waving a handkerchief that says “J. Bull.” Behind him is China dressed in a traditional emperor's robe with a hat that says “China.” Behind him is France holding his arm out towards the shore, in a blue jacket, white shirt, and a blue and yellow bicorn hat with a red feather that says “France.” In front of them is Germany in a yellow shirt with a white sash that says “Germany,” white gloves, and a white hat. Beside him is Spain, sitting and facing the water, in a tan cloak with the label “Spain,” black jacket, black hat, and tan pants. Next to Spain is Russia, grabbing onto Italy’s sleeve, in a red fur lined cloak labeled “Russia,” a crown, a blue jacket, and tan pants. Italy is grabbing onto Turkey and pulling him from the water. He is wearing a blue general’s shirt with a sash that says “Italy,” and a crown. Turkey is in the water beside the boat in a blue jacket, tan shirt, red scarf across his stomach that reads “Turkey,” and a red hat. Behind all of them are other unnamed countries dressed in their respective traditional clothing. Most of them are pointing towards the shore. On the shore is a white fence with an opening and two posts on either side. On the posts are more flowers. Uncle Sam is standing in the center of the opening in his usual blue jacket, red pants, white shirt, and black bowtie. He has both of his arms outstretched while he is bowing, and has his hat in one hand. Behind him is Columbia in a blue shirt, white skirt, red cape, and red hat. She has her arm outstretched toward the building behind her. Around them are other men and women in formal attire either bowing or holding their arm out towards the buildings behind them. There is a red sign in the crowd that says, “The States Welcome Europe To the World’s Fair.” The cartoon’s creator, Victor Gillam, was born in England, but moved to the United States at a young age. He worked for Judge for twenty years in addition to a few other magazines and newspapers. His brother is Bernhard Gillam. On the back side of the cartoon are various unrelated cartoons with their own captions.