Stolzer, Rob :: Ireland, Billy

Billy Ireland - 1910 Political Cartoon - Roosevelt + Taft + Hughes + Kaiser Wilhelm

Artist: Billy Ireland (All)

1 Comment - 1,857 Views - 2 Likes

Billy Ireland - 1910 Political Cartoon - Roosevelt + Taft + Hughes + Kaiser Wilhelm Comic Art

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Additional Images:

German Pennant with Taft + Kaiser

Next Item:
Billy Ireland - Self-Caricature on Letter - 1925

Artwork Details

Title:	Billy Ireland - 1910 Political Cartoon - Roosevelt + Taft + Hughes + Kaiser Wilhelm
Artist:	Billy Ireland (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	1,857
Likes on CAF:	2 3
Comments:	1
Added to Site:	4/28/2020
Comic Art Archive:

Description

So this is an interesting acquisition. It's a Billy Ireland political cartoon from what I believe is mid-1910. I'm sure OSU and the folks from the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum have earlier examples, but this is the earliest one I've run across. At least I think it is.

This is what I think is going on in the cartoon: Former President Teddy Roosevelt and current President William Howard Taft are corner men for Charles Evans Hughes, from when he was nominated by Taft for the Supreme Court. You can see Kaiser Wilhelm in the stands, front and center, which I thought was odd until I did more research. At the time German friendship groups were popular in the United States and those groups helped Taft's campaign, working for the immigrant vote. Seven or eight years later, things would sure be different.

There are a number of politicians in the crowd. From left-to-right they are: Boise Penrose, Senator from Pennsylvania; Winthrop Crane, Senator from Massachusetts; Reed Smoot, Senator from Utah; Jacob Gallinger, Senator from New Hampshire; Joseph Gurney Cannon, Speaker of the House from Illinois; William Barnes, the editor and publisher of the Evening Journal in Albany, New York, and a major player in Republican politics, including helping Taft secure the 1912 Republican nomination; George Perkins, Senator from California; and Elihu Root, Senator from New York.

I'm unable to access the digital archives of the Columbus Dispatch, as they're only available to residents of Ohio, so if anyone feels like helping a comic art collecting buddy out, I'd greatly appreciate it. From my research, Taft nominated Hughes to the court on April 25, 1910 and he was confirmed by the Senate on May 2, 1910, believe it or not. So I'm thinking that the cartoon may fall within that week time-span.

I'm adding an image of a pennant from one of the German friendship groups from 1910 for context. Kaiser Wilhelm was clearly trying to help Taft get elected.

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About the Owner

	Rob Stolzer Premium Gallery Owner
Joined:	September 2004
Last Login:	September 2025
Ebay Id:	robart
Website:	https://freeassociationfunnies.com/
Country:	UNITED STATES
On CAF:	Rob's Classifieds Artworks Commented On Liked Art Site Activity on CAF Read More About RobStolzer

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Comments on this Artwork

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Tyler T
Member Since 2020

Posted on 3/30/2022

Fascinating and historical piece of art. Very interesting to see, thank you for posting.

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