The Black Republican: Abraham Lincoln effigy doll is artifact of the month for September

 

Each month, a different major artifact from the recently acquired Taper Collection will be featured at the Lincoln Presidential Museum

 

Springfield, IL – A “Black Republican” effigy doll depicting Abraham Lincoln, an unflattering likeness which his many detractors would stab with pins or burn, is the artifact of the month for September at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM), the latest in a series featuring key items from the Taper Collection recently acquired by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation.

“This is a very rare survival from the 1860s – an effigy doll ready for pricking or burning, with a black-cloth face under the paper Lincoln mask, to signal that he was a member of the so-called ‘Black Republicans’ who wanted to free the slaves,” said ALPLM Lincoln Curator James Cornelius.  “The bearded mask indicates the doll was used during the 1864 presidential election, essentially recycling the same racial hatreds of 1860.” 

The hostility Lincoln faced from a majority of Americans in 1860 – he won only 39.6% of the vote that year, by far the smallest victor’s total in presidential history – took many forms.  Reports of his effigy being burned at anti-Lincoln rallies spanned the country from Georgia to Oregon.  But by the 1864 election, Lincoln’s emancipation policy had begun to move the hearts of enough Northerners that his 1864 victory was clear.

The effigy doll will be taken off display on Friday, September 30, and another key artifact from the Taper Collection will take its place.

The artifacts of the month are displayed in the central case in the Presidential Museum’s Treasures Gallery and include interpretive text explaining their significance.  These displays also highlight the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation’s Permanent Home Campaign.  The $27 million fundraising drive, established to ensure that the 1,500-item Louise and Barry Taper Collection remains together as a collection and is preserved in perpetuity for the benefit of the public, began in 2008 and continues through 2013.

The story of the September 2011 artifact as told by the ALPLM’s Lincoln Curator may be viewed at:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6tFiB2nJ58.  A podcast may be accessed at: http://ow.ly/6e2pZ.

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation, in partnership with the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, offers monthly artifact sponsorships entitled “An Evening of Wine, a Nibble of Cheese, and A Hint of History.”  The private events, hosted by a Lincoln historian, highlight a featured artifact from the Taper Collection and include light hors d’oeuvres and wine for a select number of guests.  For more information on how to become a sponsor or to donate to the Permanent Home Campaign, contact Phyllis Maynerich at (217) 557-6250 or pmaynerich@alplm.org.  Event sponsorships are tax deductible as allowed by law.        

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation supports the educational and cultural programming of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum; fosters Lincoln scholarship through the acquisition and publication of documentary materials relating to Lincoln and his era; and promotes a greater appreciation of history through exhibits, conferences, publications, online services, and other activities designed to promote historical literacy.