Search Results: Broadsides from Seth Kaller, Inc.

A remarkable broadside advertising the sale of bulletproof vests to Union forces in North Carolina in the wake of the occupation of much of coastal North Carolina by General Ambrose Burnside's Expeditionary Force. [CIVIL WAR].
Broadside. "Good News to the Army." Bartlett & Munn, Agents for Manufacturers. Newbern, N.C., April 17, 1862. 1 p., 9¾ x 6 ½ in."We beg leave to say to the officers and soldiers of the Expedition, that after some delay we have received another invoice of those Monitor, or Bullet Proof Vests, which we are selling at our stand, opposite the Post Office, and as it is impossible for us to visit all the various Camps, please call and examine, or order, with measure of breast and waist, which will insure a good fit. We shall be here only a week or two longer, therefore it is for the interest of all who may wish to purchase to call immediately..."

Historical Background

Several firms attempted to sell such bullet proof vests during the war, with ads for body armor even… Read More

ANDREW JACKSON.
Broadside. The Proclamation of Andrew Jackson, President To the People of the United States. New York: E. Conrad, [1832]. Large broadside on silk, text in 5 columns, surrounded by an ornamental border. 20½ x 29 in. 1 p. Excerpt:

"I consider then the power to annul a law of the United States, assumed by one State, incompatible with the existence of the Union, contradicted expressly by the letter of the Constitution unauthorized by it's spirit, inconsistent with every principle on which it was founded, and destructive of the great object for which it was formed …"

Historical Background

Drafted by Secretary of State Edward Livingston, but infused with the President's Unionist principles and unyielding resolve, Jackson's Proclamation was the most important statement of constitutional principles in the first half of the nineteenth century.

On November 25, 1832, South Carolina passed an Ordinance of Nullification declaring the congressional tariffs of 1828 and 1832 to be… Read More

ANDREW JACKSON.
Broadside. A Brief Account of Some of the Bloody Deeds of General Jackson, Philadelphia?, 1828. 15ÂĽ x 21 in. 1 p. Historical Background

This broadside, issued during the contentious election of 1828, in which Andrew Jackson ran against John Quincy Adams, is one of several versions with similar and at times identical text, but typographically different. At least twenty-seven different configurations are known to have been produced. These "coffin hand bills" originated with Republican editor John Binns (1772-1860) of Philadelphia in his campaign against presidential candidate Andrew Jackson.

This version shows a row of six coffins at the top, referring to the deaths of militiamen during the Creek War. The next series of coffins represent the executions of regular soldiers shot to death near Nashville. The single coffin to the right refers to the execution of John Woods, about who Jackson "repeatedly vociferated, 'Shoot the damn'd rascal!'" The final four coffins… Read More

"If there is one measure better calculated than another to produce that state of things so much deprecated by all true republicans, by which the rich are daily adding to their hoards and the poor sinking deeper into penury, it is an exclusive metallic currency...."

"Always the friend of my countrymen, never their flatterer, it becomes my duty to say to them… that there exists in the land a spirit hostile to their best interests—hostile to liberty itself.... It is union that we want, not of a party for the sake of that party, but a union of the whole country for the sake of the whole country, for the defense of its interests and its honor against foreign aggression, for the defense of those principles for which our ancestors so gloriously contended...." WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.
Broadside. ca. March 1841. 1 p., 11â…ť x 19 in.On a cold, wet day, March 4, 1841, President Harrison delivered the longest inaugural address in history. Harrison wrote the entire speech himself, though it was… Read More

When Johnny comes marching home again, Hurrah! Hurrah! / We'll give him a hearty welcome then, Hurrah! Hurrah!... [PATRICK GILMORE].
Broadside, "When Johnny comes marching home." Philadelphia, Johnson & Co., Song Publishers. [1863-65]. 6 x 9 in., 1 p.
Noting that the music was published by Tolman & Co., Boston, and sung to the tune, 'Johnny Fill Up the Bowl,' the song's lyrics were written by Irish American bandmaster Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore (1829-1892). Its first sheet music publication was deposited in the Library of Congress on September 26, 1863, with words and music credited to "Louis Lambert," a pseudonym.

Ogdensburgh, N.Y. October 31, 1856. 1 p. 10 1/2 x 7 1/2 in. Foxing, some paper remnants on verso. A campaign poster for the first Presidential election with a Republican candidate, John C. FrĂ©mont. This broadside makes a sweeping attack against FrĂ©mont, claiming he is ineligible for the Presidency as he was born in Montreal and also unsuitable for the position because he was a Roman Catholic. In fact, FrĂ©mont was born in Savannah, Georgia, but he was the illegitimate child of Virginia socialite Anne Beverly Whiting and her Canadian-born French tutor, Charles FrĂ©mon.In early 1854, then United States Senator Salmon P. Chase became a prominent leader of the anti-slavery forces in the United States. He capitalized on the controversial Kansas-Nebraska Act to create a new political party from the remnants of the Free-Soil, Whig, Democrat, and Know-Nothing (American) parties. The new fusion party, the Republican Party, nominated Chase as candidate for Ohio governor in 1855. He won, becoming the highest… Read More

Foraging during wartime often pits an army against its supporters in the civilian population. In his final month of departmental command before returning to the Army of Northern Virginia, Confederate Brigadier General John Nichols warning his soldiers not to molest citizens or their property. [CONFEDERACY]. JOHN ECHOLS.
Broadside. General Orders. Dublin [Virginia], September 5, 1864. 12 x 10 ½ in.
Excerpt:

"Frequent complaints having reached these Head Quarters of depredations having been committed upon the property of citizens of South Western Va. and East Tennessee, and of the willful and unnecessary waste of the substance of the country by the straggling squads of men connected with the various command in this Department, the immediate attention of all Commanding Officers is directed thereto; and they are hereby ordered to bring all offenders in this respect to speedy and certain punishment. Officers are responsible for the conduct of their men and they will be held to such… Read More

Broadside describing the first occupation of Winchester, Virginia, during the Civil War. [CIVIL WAR].
Broadside, signed in type by Colonel William D. Lewis, Winchester, Virginia, April 17, 1862, 1 p. 12½ x 11 in.
Partial Transcript

"HEAD QUARTERS,

Commander of the Post,

Winchester, Va., April 17, 1862.

CITIZENS OF WINCHESTER:

Upon me has devolved the duty of commanding this Post. My wish and my duty is to afford you all the liberty and protection, due to fellow citizens. The Government I represent, is the same our forefathers established to form a more perfect Union. . . promote the general welfare and secure to us and our posterity, the blessing of Liberty. We mean truly to represent its impartial Justice.

But no one can expect the privileges of a citizen and behave as an enemy. No one can expect kindness . . . who does not extend it to others.

Citizens are reminded that the troops now stationed here, are those of their own Government, and are lawfully here on their country's soil. . .… Read More

A very large letterpress broadside for three intramural Yale boat races on Lake Saltonstall in East Haven, Connecticut. Participants rowed in racing shells, double sculls, and wherries, contesting for cash prizes. Excursion trains from downtown New Haven cost 50 cents, and a band enlivened the afternoon.
[YALE UNIVERSITY]. Yale Summer Races! At Lake Saltonstall, on Tuesday, June 28th, 1870. New Haven: Hoggson & Robinson. broadside, 29 x 41 inches, on yellow paper.
The July 2, 1870 issue of the Yale Courant reported that the "races at Saltonstall have long been anticipated by all lovers of boating at Yale, as here the University crew was to test its strength with the best crews in college, and, furthermore the single sculls were to the championship of college and for the beautiful Southworth Cup. The best of arrangements had been made to ensure promptness and success, and the train of nineteen cars, completely loaded with ladies, students, and citizens, left the depot soon after the appointed hour.… Read More

Boston, Massachusetts, 1791. No binding. Very Good. Broadside. List of Graduating Students and Theses for Disputation. Boston, Massachusetts: Samuel Hall, 1791. 1 p., 18 x 22 in. Interesting broadside in Latin issued for Harvard University's 1791 commencement lists Latinized names of 27 graduating students. Among the graduates are New Hampshire Justice John Harris (1769-1845); U.S. Representative Thomas Rice (1768-1854); and Henry Dana Ward (1768-1817), youngest son of General Artemas Ward (1727-1800), who initially commanded the patriot army around Boston in 1775. Historical BackgroundThe Theses broadsides display propositions and questions respectively, used in the Commencement tradition of public student disputation which began at Harvard College in 1642. The practice was instituted under the leadership of President Henry Dunster (president from 1640-1654) within a larger effort to model the college after European universities.Behind the printed broadsides was a multi-stage process that involved… Read More

Interesting broadside in Latin issued for Harvard University's 1786 commencement lists Latinized names of 45 graduating students. Among the graduates are Joseph Warren (1768-1790), the son of prominent Boston physician and Harvard graduate Joseph Warren, who was killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775; Boston attorney Timothy Bigelow (1767-1821); U.S. Senator Christopher G. Champlin (1768-1840); Boston attorney John Lowell Jr. (1769-1840), whose grandson served as president of Harvard in the early twentieth century; U.S. Senator Thomas W. Thompson (1766-1821); and Massachusetts Chief Justice Isaac Parker (1768-1830). HARVARD COLLEGE.
Broadside. List of Graduating Students and Theses for Disputation. Boston, Massachusetts: Edmund Freeman, 1786. 1 p., 16 x 24 in.
Historical Background

The Theses broadsides display propositions, used in the Commencement tradition of public student disputation which began at Harvard College in 1642. The practice was instituted under the leadership of… Read More

"The States are emphatically the constituents of this Government...." JOHN TYLER.
Broadside. State of the Union Message. National Intelligencer—Extra, June 1, 1841. Washington, DC: Gales and Seaton. 1 p., 18 x 23 in.William Henry Harrison took office in 1841 while the nation was still suffering from a depression sparked by the Panic of 1837, causing many banks to fail and unemployment to reach then-record levels. Though Harrison took ill almost immediately after giving his lengthy March 4 inaugural address, on March 17 he summoned Congress into a special session that would convene on May 31, 1841. On April 4, Harrison became the first President to die in office. John Tyler delivered his own inaugural address on April 9, but opponents in Congress, including John Quincy Adams, refused to accept Tyler's claim to be president and considered him instead the "acting president," arguing that he had to follow Harrison's policies.

When Congress convenes, it appoints a joint committee "to wait on… Read More

1865. No binding. Fine. Broadside. The Nation's Loss. A Poem on the Life and Death of the Hon. Abraham Lincoln. 1865. 1 p., 9 3/4 x 15 1/4 in. 1/2 inch loss at top not affecting text. Headed by an engraving of Lincoln, Reverend Peter W. Brister's mourning poem occupies the first two columns, and Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation is printed in full in the third column. Brister's poem addressed what Lincoln meant to the nation during the Civil War, how he saved the Union, and freed the slaves. Below the image of Lincoln it reads ""Late President of the United States, Who departed this life, in Washington, D.C., April 15, 1865.""

Apparently unrecorded, this broadside extra prints President Monroe's last annual message to Congress, delivered on December 7, 1824. Covers relations with Great Britain, the slave trade, Indian relations, the comprehensive survey of possible road and canal sites in the interior, and an elaboration on the Monroe Doctrine, providing the rationale for exhorting European states not to interfere with the evolution of the newly independent Latin American states. "Separated as we are, from Europe by the great Atlantic Ocean, we can have no concern in the wars of the European governments, nor in the causes which produce them. The balance of power between them, into whichever scale it may turn, in its various vibrations, cannot affect us. It is the interest of the United States to preserve the most friendly relations with every power, and on conditions fair, equal, and applicable to all. But in regard to our neighbours, our situation is different. It is impossible for the European governments to… Read More

[AFRICAN AMERICAN].
Broadside. "Part of a Speech of the N. H. "Champion of Democracy" on the Negro Question," no place, [New Hampshire], c. 1867. 1 p., 9½ x 13½ in. Excerpt

"New Hampshire and South Carolina.

There are more than three hundred thousand white people in New Hampshire. In South Carolina, there are less than three hundred thousand whites, and more than four hundred thousand negroes. If the negroes are not counted, there are more people in New Hampshire than in South Carolina. If the negroes are counted, there are more than twice as many people in South Carolina as in New Hampshire But for the convenience of round numbers, call New Hampshire three hundred thousand (300,000) whites, and call South Carolina three hundred thousand (300,000) whites and three hundred thousand (300,000) negroes....Our 300,000 white people in New Hampshire have 3 Representatives, and the 300,000 white people in South Carolina ought to have 3 Representatives, and no more. But if the whites in… Read More

1862. No binding. Fine. Broadside. ""The Petition of Certain Non-Conscripts, Respectfully Presented to the Confederate States Congress."" Richmond, August 8, 1862. Signed in print, ""The Petitioners, By their Counsel, John H. Gilmer."" 1 p., 7 7/8 x 10 3/8 in. Petitioning against General Order No. 46 of the Confederate War Department, which rescinded the part of the Confederate Conscription Act of April 16, 1862 that mandated the discharge of all voluntary enlistees under age 18 or over age 35 in July 1862. ""These were the terms of the law. They were plain, unequivocal and mandatory. Common sense - universal public opinion ... understood, accepted and adopted the law ... Shall an army order revoke a solemn act of Congress? ... Have we a constitutional Government, with specific powers granted ... or have we an unlimited Government, dependent only on Executive will or ministerial caprice? Are the People free or is the Executive supreme?""… Read More

[AFRICAN AMERICAN].
Printed Broadside. "The Extravaganza of Jim Crow!" ca. 1832-1838. As sung by Thomas D. Rice. 1 p., 5â…› x 16 in. Contemporary variant of "Jump Jim Crow," a traditional song made famous or infamous in the minstrel shows of T. D. Rice. This version has thirty-nine verses, with the chorus, and includes a final verse not seen elsewhere.
The character of "Jim Crow" has a complicated and fascinating history. Based on a folk trickster long popular among African American slaves, the persona of Jim Crow began as an assault on racism and then developed into a negative, stereotypical view. After Reconstruction, it lent its name to harshly segregationist laws that persisted across the South until the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

Historical Background

Rice grew up in a racially integrated Manhattan neighborhood and also toured southern slave states, where he observed African American traditional songs and dances. Although superficially stereotyping African… Read More

"Daniel Webster The Union Man, the Patriot, is to be with us To-morrow… Let us all meet to give him a welcome at the Depot… Let us show to the world that we have a 'higher law'—a law above all party politics—the Divine Law of Patriotism!" [DANIEL WEBSTER].
Broadside announcing his upcoming arrival at Springfield, Massachusetts, April 7, [1851]. 1 p., 12 x 16½ in.
Excerpts:

"Men of Hampden! Our ancestors, who, with arms in their hands, relinquished not their efforts, or spared their blood, so long as a British enemy was on their soil were Regulators! When we last rallied, we drove a British Spy, a malignant, thieving wolf, a paid emissary of Slave Drivers from among us; partly estimating his moral caliber, we deemed him not even worthy of the gibbet! Rotten eggs were found entirely effective in ridding us of such carion. While our past history has shown us fully capable of meeting our enemies with an adequate force to crush their futile attempts at evil, we have ever… Read More

"They grinned and pushed on, and with a yell that told the southern chivalry their doom, [they] rolled irresistibly over and into the work." [CIVIL WAR].
Broadside. New England Loyal Publication Society No. 200. Boston, Mass., June 27, 1864. 1 p., 9 x 10Âľ in.
A New York Tribune reporter praises the performance of the USCT: "I find that in my account of the assault upon the rebel works in front of Petersburg I hardly did the colored troops justice. As before stated, they held a position on the Jourdan Point road....They were first directed to assault the earthwork....the charge upon the advanced works was made in splendid style; and as the 'dusky warriors' stood shouting upon the parapet, Gen. Smith decided that 'they would do' and sent word for them to storm the first redoubt. Steadily these troops moved on, led by officers whose unostentatious bravery is worthy of emulation. With a shout and rousing cheers they dashed at the redoubt. Grape and canister were hurled at them by the… Read More

[CIVIL WAR].
Broadside, "The Excursion of the Bought Nominations, The Large Balloon 'Union League,' Will Start Immediately. The Balloon is managed by the Old Hunkers in the Ring." [1864]. 4 ¾ x 8 ½ in. Historical Background

The Union League Club formed in New York in 1863 to support Union troops and cultivate civil devotion. Made up of prominent citizens in New York, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, New Haven, and Chicago, the clubs raised money to provide for the U.S. Sanitary Commission and establish a group of political elites to sustain Union military efforts. The league favored a strong central government, tariff protections, and internal improvements.

The "Old Hunkers" were the conservative branch of the New York state Democratic party in the mid-nineteenth century. They favored the status quo, whether in business or on the contentious issue of slavery. The more progressive "Barnburner" faction stood in opposition to the old Hunkers, and were against slavery, strong state powers,… Read More