Price
$24.95
Condition
used
Product Condition
Very fine
Size
5.5" x 3"
1861-65 Civil War Union Patriotic Cover Columbia George Washington Shield.
A wonderful Civil War anti-Confederate satirical cover published by S. C. Upham of Philadelphia, one of the best-known publishers of Civil War patriotic and satirical material.
The illustration depicts a fanciful “Southern Kite” flying above a cityscape, accompanied by a lengthy verse mocking Southern secession and Confederate aspirations. The kite boasts of its lofty position and wishes it could fly still higher, only to discover that its restraining string cannot be broken. The verse concludes with the pointed punch line:
“To break the string—It didn’t broke!”
Below the illustration appears the publisher's imprint “S. C. Upham, 310 Chestnut St.”
The imagery turns the Confederacy into an overconfident kite: soaring temporarily but ultimately tethered and unable to escape. It is a particularly clever example of the political humor and visual propaganda appearing on Northern patriotic stationery during the Civil War.
Unused and original.
From a large collection of patriotic civil war covers in very fine condition that we have acquired.
Philadelphia publisher Samuel C. Upham became famous during the Civil War for producing facsimiles of Confederate currency. Initially marketed as souvenirs or curiosities, enormous quantities circulated in the South and Confederate authorities regarded them as counterfeits. Upham also published patriotic envelopes, cards and other topical material, making his imprint particularly desirable on Civil War ephemera
$24.95
used
Very fine
5.5" x 3"