1860 Beardless Lincoln Front Page — "Abram Lincoln" Misspelled — Pre-Civil War

🗞️ HARPER'S WEEKLY · May 26, 1860
Complete Issue · New York

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One of the most historically significant and actively collected issues in the entire Harper's Weekly run — the first full front-page portrait of Abraham Lincoln published after his nomination, misspelling his name as "Abram Lincoln" (reflecting how little known he was nationally), with a detailed textual portrait continuing to page 2, ballot results for all three presidential ballots, Hannibal Hamlin's biographical sketch, and three full pages on the Japanese Embassy at the White House. Lincoln was so unknown nationally that Harper's Weekly misspelled his first name. This issue did more than almost any other single publication to introduce Lincoln to the American public. Price this as a premium issue.

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🎩 "ABRAM LINCOLN" — THE FRONT PAGE THAT INTRODUCED LINCOLN TO AMERICA
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🏛️ LARGE FRONT PAGE PORTRAIT — "HON. ABRAM LINCOLN, OF ILLINOIS, REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT" — BEARDLESS
A large front-page portrait of Abraham Lincoln — captioned "Hon. Abram Lincoln, of Illinois, Republican Candidate For President," misspelling his first name as "Abram" rather than "Abraham," a revealing indicator of how little the national press knew about the man who had just won the Republican nomination. Lincoln was so unknown to the Eastern press establishment that Harper's Weekly — the most widely circulated illustrated newspaper in America — could not even get his name right. The portrait is beardless — Lincoln would not grow his famous beard until November 1860, after receiving the suggestion from 11-year-old Grace Bedell of Westfield, New York. Any published portrait of Lincoln without his beard belongs to an extraordinarily narrow window of 1858-1860, and this front-page portrait — the largest and most prominent Lincoln image published in the American illustrated press to this date — is among the most significant and collectible of all Lincoln newspaper portraits. The balance of the front page and the first column of page 2 carry a detailed textual portrait — a comprehensive biographical introduction of Lincoln to a national audience that had never heard of him. This issue is described by the dealer as "one of the most desired pre-Civil War issues of this famous illustrated newspaper" and "did much to propel Abraham Lincoln to national prominence." An essential piece of Lincoln history, presidential history, and American political history of the highest order.

📊 "DOMESTIC INTELLIGENCE" — BALLOT RESULTS FOR ALL THREE PRESIDENTIAL BALLOTS
The ballot-by-ballot results of Lincoln's nomination — showing every candidate's vote in each of the three ballots at the Chicago Wigwam, from Seward's first-ballot lead through Lincoln's third-ballot victory. A primary document of the most consequential presidential nomination in American history, showing exactly how Lincoln came from behind to win.

👤 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH — "HON. HANNIBAL HAMLIN" — LINCOLN'S RUNNING MATE
A biographical sketch of Hannibal Hamlin of Maine — Lincoln's vice-presidential running mate, a former Democrat who had broken with his party over slavery and joined the Republicans. Hamlin would serve as Vice President until being replaced by Andrew Johnson on the 1864 ticket — a replacement that would have enormous consequences when Lincoln was assassinated in April 1865.

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🎎 THE JAPANESE EMBASSY — THREE FULL PAGES
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🎎 THREE FULL PAGES — "THE JAPANESE EMBASSY" — IN WASHINGTON AND AT THE WHITE HOUSE
Three full pages documenting the Japanese diplomatic delegation's visit to Washington — the first official Japanese embassy to the United States, received by President Buchanan at the White House, as Japan cautiously opened to Western commerce under the Harris Treaty. The Japanese ambassadors — in their magnificent traditional dress, navigating the alien world of Washington society — were the sensation of the 1860 social season. A significant piece of American-Japanese diplomatic history and the opening of Japan.

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🔔 THE BELLS OF CHRIST CHURCH, CAMBRIDGE
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🔔 ILLUSTRATION — "CHIME OF 13 BELLS FOR CHRIST CHURCH, CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS" — BY HENRY N. HOOPER & CO., BOSTON
An illustration of the chime of 13 bells manufactured for Christ Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts — a significant piece of American bell-founding and church history, and notably attributed by Smithsonian American Art Museum records as an early Winslow Homer illustration (Smithsonian accession note connecting Homer to this exact Harper's Weekly issue). A significant piece of New England religious and craft 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 ··············· May 26, 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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