- When
- 1844
In one line: the Democrat James K. Polk beat the Whig Henry Clay, with the Liberty Party's James G. Birney also running, and this page holds the ten objects (banners, a badge, a ballot ticket and cartoons) catalogued for the two major candidates, five each, and none for Birney.
Context
Polk (Democratic) won 170 electoral votes to Clay's (Whig) 105 [1]. In the popular vote Polk took 1,339,494 (49.5%) and Clay 1,300,004 (48.1%) [2]. Birney, of the anti-slavery Liberty Party, won 2.3% of the popular vote, according to Wikipedia's cross-check summary [3].
That summary names the Texas annexation controversy as the central issue, with Polk for annexation and Clay against it, and the dispute with Britain over Oregon as a linked one [3]. The objects held here are lithographed banners, cartoons, a badge and a printed ballot ticket, so the archive's view of the campaign is the printed-image side of it.
Campaign literature
| Candidate (party) | Objects in the archive |
|---|---|
| James K. Polk (Democratic) | 5 |
| Henry Clay (Whig) | 5 |
| James G. Birney (Liberty) | 0 |
Each major candidate has five objects. No Birney campaign item is catalogued: the one Birney print located is a commercial portrait, not campaign literature. Three of Clay's five ("Loco Foco Triumphal Honors", "Polk & Co. Going Up Salt River" and "Polk in His Extremity") are placed on the Whig side by their content and the Library of Congress (LOC) description, because no issuer is named on them. The other two Clay items are Whig by their imprint or LOC's description, and the Polk items are Democratic by a stated party or by LOC's description of the print as pro-Democratic.
James K. Polk (Democratic)
- Grand National Democratic Banner. Press Onward (Polk and Dallas), 1844 (print, 1844-06): a Currier banner with portraits of Polk and Dallas under an eagle, the slogan "Polk, the Young Hickory" and "Dallas and Victory".
- Democratic ticket for Maryland electors: Polk and Dallas, 1844 (document, 1844-11): a small ballot ticket under a flag and liberty cap, naming Polk, Dallas and eight Maryland electors.
- Texas Coming In (pro-Polk cartoon), 1844 (cartoon, 1844): a steamboat "Texas" reaches Polk while Clay, Frelinghuysen and Webster are dragged into Salt River; Garrison calls Clay a "blackleg".
- Treeing Coons (pro-Polk cartoon), 1844 (cartoon, 1844): Polk in hunter's dress holds Clay and Frelinghuysen, drawn as raccoons, by the tail while Jackson chops their branch.
- Tyrants Prostrate, Liberty Triumphant (pro-Polk cartoon on Dorr), 1844 (cartoon, 1844): Polk and Dallas clasp hands beside the jailed Thomas Dorr while Clay, Frelinghuysen and Webster speak of aristocracy and of church and state.
Henry Clay (Whig)
- Grand National Whig Banner. "Onward" (Clay and Frelinghuysen), 1844 (print, 1844-04): a Currier banner with portraits of Clay and Frelinghuysen under an eagle, with "The Nation's Choice" and "Justice to Harry of the West".
- For President Henry Clay, for Vice President Theodore Frelinghuysen (Whig badge), 1844 (print, 1844): an engraved Whig badge with oval portraits of both men in wreaths, under eagles, with a seller's line.
- Loco Foco Triumphal Honors (pro-Whig cartoon), 1844 (cartoon, 1844): a mock procession carrying Polk and Dallas on a rail, the bearers drawn as ragged men in stereotyped Irish and Black caricature; placed by content and LOC description.
- Polk & Co. Going Up Salt River (pro-Clay cartoon), 1844 (cartoon, 1844): Polk and others in a dinghy towed up Salt River by the "Steamer Ballot Box"; placed by content and LOC description.
- Polk in His Extremity (pro-Clay cartoon), 1844 (cartoon, 1844): Clay nearly at the top of a pole, "With ease I reach the goal", while Polk is prodded and held up below; placed by content and LOC description, with no party imprint.
James G. Birney (Liberty)
No Birney object is catalogued.
Techniques visible
The same definitions apply to every candidate. Each list below is generated from the techniques tags in the entries.
- Name-calling: Polk (Texas Coming In (pro-Polk cartoon), 1844, Treeing Coons (pro-Polk cartoon), 1844, Tyrants Prostrate, Liberty Triumphant (pro-Polk cartoon on Dorr), 1844); Clay (Loco Foco Triumphal Honors (pro-Whig cartoon), 1844, Polk & Co. Going Up Salt River (pro-Clay cartoon), 1844, Polk in His Extremity (pro-Clay cartoon), 1844). The tell is the same for each: a derisive or loaded label, animal or ethnic image attached to a candidate, his backers or his opponents in place of an argument.
- Bandwagon: Polk (Grand National Democratic Banner. Press Onward (Polk and Dallas), 1844, Texas Coming In (pro-Polk cartoon), 1844); Clay (Grand National Whig Banner. "Onward" (Clay and Frelinghuysen), 1844, Polk in His Extremity (pro-Clay cartoon), 1844). The tell is the same for each: a slogan, verse or picture announcing that the candidate is winning or that others are joining.
- Transfer: Polk (Grand National Democratic Banner. Press Onward (Polk and Dallas), 1844, Democratic ticket for Maryland electors: Polk and Dallas, 1844); Clay (For President Henry Clay, for Vice President Theodore Frelinghuysen (Whig badge), 1844). The tell is the same for each: the standing of a person, place, symbol or event is attached to a candidate.
- Fear appeal: Polk (Tyrants Prostrate, Liberty Triumphant (pro-Polk cartoon on Dorr), 1844). The tell is the same for each: a staged threat, with the candidate or party offered as protection.
- Glittering generalities: Clay (Grand National Whig Banner. "Onward" (Clay and Frelinghuysen), 1844). The tell is the same for each: virtue words offered with no testable claim.
- Plain folks: Polk (Treeing Coons (pro-Polk cartoon), 1844). The tell is the same for each: the candidate is presented through plain-living props or a frontier or farm persona.
Sources
- National Archives, "Electoral College: 1844 Election", https://www.archives.gov/electoral-college/1844
- American Presidency Project, "1844", https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/statistics/elections/1844
- Wikipedia, "1844 United States presidential election" (cross-check only), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1844_United_States_presidential_election
- LOC records, https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ followed by: 2003674555 (Polk banner), 2008661416 (ticket), 2008661429 (Texas), 2008661421 (coons), 2008661420 (Dorr), 2003674551 (Clay banner), 2003656562 (badge), 2008661432 (Loco Foco), 2008661435 (Salt River), 2008661423 (extremity).