Political Cartoon: The "Rail Splitter" at Work Repairing the Union

Abraham Lincoln's Reconstruction Plan & the Wade Davis Bill He Vetoed

Political Cartoon: The "Rail Splitter" at Work Repairing the Union

07/1865

Political Cartoon

The Library of Congress presents an 1865 political cartoon, drawn by J. E. Baker and published by Currier & Ives, that depicts President Abraham Lincoln with a large piece of wood tilting a sphere with a drawing of the United States on it and, atop the sphere, there is Lincoln's presidential successor, Andrew Johnson, drawing and sewing back together the United States. The caption above Johnson reads, "Take it quietly Uncle Abe and I will draw it closer than ever!!" while the caption about Lincoln reads, "A few more stitches Andy and the good old Union will be mended!"

View Source Here

Library of Congress

Rights Statement: Project Reconstruction curates links to primary and secondary sources from a wide variety of digital newspapers, museums, libraries, universities, historical societies and other governmental and nongovernmental websites. Use of said content is solely at your own risk. Consult each source’s original publisher for all rights and terms of use associated with their content.

Insensitive Language/Images: Some sources may include insensitive language or images that were created just before, during or after the Reconstruction Era. We try our best to include advisory “notes” in the description section of each source to inform site visitors about potentially insensitive material.

Fairness & Accuracy Statement: We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that seems inaccurate or doesn't look right, please contact us.