1860 Winslow Homer Union Meeting (Smithsonian), Pro-Slavery Rally NYC — Jan 7

🗞️ HARPER'S WEEKLY · January 7, 1860
Complete Issue · New York

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A historically exceptional issue — the front page is a Winslow Homer illustration held in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, documenting the Great Union Meeting of December 19, 1859 — a massive pro-slavery rally at New York's Academy of Music in which prominent Northern politicians condemned John Brown and pledged support for the South's right to enslave people, with letters of support from three former presidents. The double-page centerfold documents the interior of the same meeting. A primary document of Northern complicity in slavery at its most dramatic and politically charged moment — just eighteen days after John Brown's execution.

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🎨 WINSLOW HOMER — "UNION MEETINGS IN THE OPEN AIR"
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🏛️ FULL FRONT PAGE — "UNION MEETINGS IN THE OPEN AIR OUTSIDE THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC, DECEMBER 19, 1859" — BY WINSLOW HOMER
A full front-page wood engraving by Winslow Homer — held in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (Accession No. 1996.63.1, The Ray Austrian Collection, gift of Beatrice L. Austrian, Caryl A. Austrian and James A. Austrian, image: 10 7⁄8 × 9 1⁄8 in.). This is Homer's tenth major illustration in Harper's Weekly spanning 1859-1860, and one of his most politically charged — depicting the overflow crowds outside the Academy of Music on 14th Street during the Great Union Meeting of December 19, 1859.

The Great Union Meeting was one of the most significant — and troubling — political events of the antebellum period. Held just eighteen days after John Brown's execution, it was convened by prominent Northern businessmen and politicians to condemn John Brown and all abolitionist efforts, to pledge Northern support for the South's right to continue slavery, and to endorse the forced return of fugitive slaves to bondage under the Fugitive Slave Act. The 4,000-seat Academy of Music was packed, with thousands more outside — as Homer's illustration documents. Three former presidents — Van Buren, Fillmore, and Pierce — sent letters of support. The infamous attorney Charles O'Conor — who had defended Daniel Sickles — delivered a speech entitled "Negro Slavery Not Unjust," later published by Duke University's Rare Book Library. This Harper's Weekly front page, illustrated by Homer and held in the Smithsonian, is a primary document of Northern pro-slavery sentiment at its most organized and public — a significant and sobering piece of Black American history, slavery history, and Civil War origins history.

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🏛️ THE GREAT UNION MEETING — DOUBLE-PAGE CENTERFOLD
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🏛️ DOUBLE-PAGE CENTERFOLD — "THE GREAT UNION MEETING AT THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC, NEW YORK, DECEMBER 19, 1859"
A double-page centerfold of the interior of the Academy of Music during the Great Union Meeting — 4,000 seats filled with New York's business and political establishment pledging support for the South and condemning abolitionism. A vivid and historically significant piece of antebellum political history.

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🪶 "REDHORN SURROUNDED BY THE REDSKINS"
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🪶 QUARTER PAGE — "REDHORN SURROUNDED BY THE REDSKINS"
A quarter-page illustration of a frontier encounter between a named figure — Redhorn — and a group of Native Americans — a vivid piece of antebellum Western frontier illustration and Native American history.

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📋 CONDITION
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I photograph every page of every issue so you can inspect the condition closely before purchasing. Please review all images carefully and don't hesitate to ask any questions — I'm happy to provide additional detail or close-up shots of any page, illustration, or area of concern before you buy.

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📌 DETAILS
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Publication ········ Harper's Weekly
Date ··············· January 7, 1860
City ··············· New York
Format ············· Illustrated newspaper, complete in 16 pages

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📦 SHIPPING & PRESERVATION
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• Stored in an acid-free protective bag and flat-shipped in a padded envelope with heavy cardboard reinforcement
• Fully tracked for your peace of mind

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🔍 SEO TAGS
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