The State Historical Society of MO displays a century of editorial cartoons
Read more: Local, State, National, Politics, Election
COLUMBIA -- In honor of the presidential elections Missouri's State Historical Society and the University of Missouri School of Journalism, are displaying a hundred years of election cartoons at the university's Ellis library.
The original drawings are a collection of newspaper illustrations that depict politics of their time.
"We have a collection of over 8,000 editorial cartoons that the State Historical Society has collected," said Joan Stack, curator of art collections, "Over the years you'll see a change in style."
In 1908 artists used a dip pen. Before the 1920's artists had an illustration style. Today artists use a mechanical pen.
Tom Engelhardt worked for the St. Louis Post Dispatch for more than 35 years, retiring in 1997. He believes hot topics in politics have not changed, "If you go back and look at cartoons that are several hundreds years old, [they are] dealing with the same subjects that we do today. War and peace, the poor peasants, who are often times victims of the war, starvation, going after the powers that be."
What has changed is the common voter.
"Around 1940-41 people rode public transportation, we all read newspapers, so it was not unusual to have conversations with strangers," said Engelhardt.
Engelhardt said that in the 1950's more highways were built, and more people drove their own cars. He feels that American society is more 'fragmented.'
One of Engelhardt's popular cartoons is from the 1972 presidential election between George McGovern and Richard Nixon. Engelhardt supported McGovern, but was disappointed when he dropped Missouri Senator Thomas Eagleton as his vice presidential running mate after word of Eagleton's medical treatment for depression leaked to the press.
The cartoon is McGovern sitting on a giant white rabbit, holding a sign that says 'McGovern.' The rabbit is looking up at McGovern saying, "Where to now, O great leader?" One the floor is the Eagleton sign.
"It's saying that McGovern isn't much of a leader. In this case I thought the idea of a rabbit, which is kind of a weak, timid animal summed it up. I really thought he should have kept Eagleton.
100 years of election cartoons will be on display through January.
State Historical Society of Missouri
