Thomas Nast

Thomas Nast
Albumen silver print of Nast by Napoleon Sarony, taken in Union Square, New York City
Born(1840-09-26)September 26, 1840
Landau, Rhine Palatinate, Bavaria (present-day Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany)
DiedDecember 7, 1902(1902-12-07) (aged 62)
Guayaquil, Guayas, Ecuador
Political partyRepublican
Signature
Thomas Nast's birth certificate issued under the auspices of the King of Bavaria on September 26, 1840[1]

Thomas Nast (/næst/; German: [nast]; September 26, 1840[2] – December 7, 1902) was a German-born American caricaturist and editorial cartoonist often considered to be the "Father of the American Cartoon".[3]

He was a sharp critic of "Boss" Tweed and the Tammany Hall Democratic Party political machine. He created a modern version of Santa Claus (based on the traditional German figures of Saint Nicholas and Weihnachtsmann) and the political symbol of the elephant for the Republican Party (GOP). Contrary to popular belief, Nast did not create Uncle Sam (the male personification of the United States Federal Government), Columbia (the female personification of American values), or the Democratic donkey,[4] although he did popularize those symbols through his artwork. Nast was associated with the magazine Harper's Weekly from 1859 to 1860 and from 1862 until 1886. Nast's influence was so widespread that Theodore Roosevelt once said, "Thomas Nast was our best teacher."

  1. ^ Adler, John. "About Nast | Political Cartoonist | Thomas Nast".
  2. ^ Nast believed his birthday was September 27, but his birth certificate issued under the auspices of the King of Bavaria, shows September 26. Adler, John. "About Nast". ThomasNast.com. Retrieved 2022-10-02.
  3. ^ "The Historic Elephant and Donkey; It Was Thomas Nast "Father of the American Cartoon," Who Brought Them Into Politics" (PDF). The New York Times. August 2, 1908. p. SM9. Retrieved 2017-09-20.
  4. ^ Dewey 2007, pp.14-18