1860 Slave Ship "Wildfire" Slave Deck — Key West, Lincoln Editorial — Jun 2

🗞️ HARPER'S WEEKLY · June 2, 1860
Complete Issue · New York

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One of the most historically significant issues in the entire Harper's Weekly run — a three-quarter page illustration of hundreds of enslaved Africans crammed onto the slave deck of the bark Wildfire, seized at Key West on April 30, 1860, with four companion illustrations including individual portraits of survivors and the Key West barracoon; a detailed insider article "On Board a Slaver, By One of the Trade"; a Lincoln editorial; and the Japanese ambassadors. Described as the only pre-Civil War issue of Harper's Weekly to contain an illustration showing enslaved people on a slave ship — a primary document of the illegal slave trade at its most visceral and human.

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⛓️ THE SLAVE SHIP WILDFIRE — KEY WEST
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💀 THREE-QUARTER PAGE — "THE SLAVE DECK ON THE BARK 'WILDFIRE' BROUGHT INTO KEY WEST ON APRIL 30, 1860" — WITH FOUR COMPANION ILLUSTRATIONS AND RELATED TEXT
A three-quarter page illustration of the slave deck of the bark Wildfire — showing a vast number of enslaved Africans crammed onto the deck in the conditions of the Middle Passage — published just thirty-three days after the vessel was seized by the U.S. Navy brig Mohawk and brought into Key West, Florida on April 30, 1860. The Wildfire had sailed from the Congo River with 510 enslaved Africans aboard — mostly young men and boys — and was intercepted en route to Cuba, where they were to be sold. The seizure of the Wildfire came just seventeen months after the Wanderer had landed its illegal cargo on Jekyll Island, Georgia (documented in Harper's Weekly January 15, 1859), and the two incidents together bracket the final years of the illegal transatlantic slave trade to American shores.

The four companion illustrations — including "An African," "The Only Baby Among the Africans," and "The Barracoon at Key West Where the Africans Are Confined" — give the enslaved individuals a human face with extraordinary power. The portrait of a single African survivor and the image of the only infant among the 510 captives are among the most humanizing images of the illegal slave trade ever published in the American press. The barracoon — the holding pen where the survivors were confined after rescue — documents the brutal conditions that continued even after liberation.

The detailed article "On Board a Slaver, By One of the Trade" provides a first-person insider account of the slave trade's mechanics — a primary document of the illegal traffic in human beings as described by someone who participated in it. Combined with the illustrations, this makes the June 2, 1860 issue the most comprehensive single-issue documentary of the illegal slave trade in the American illustrated press — and the only pre-Civil War Harper's Weekly issue to contain an illustration of enslaved people on a slave ship. An essential piece of Black American history, slavery history, and Civil War origins history of the highest order. Price this as a premium issue alongside the Lincoln and Wanderer issues.

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🎩 THE LINCOLN EDITORIAL
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📰 NEARLY FULL COLUMN — "THE NOMINATION OF LINCOLN" — EDITORIAL
A nearly full-column editorial on the controversy of nominating Lincoln over Seward — Harper's Weekly's assessment of the most unexpected presidential nomination in Republican history, examining why the party's frontrunner William Henry Seward was passed over for the relatively unknown Illinois lawyer. Published just twelve days after the nomination, this editorial is a primary document of the immediate national reaction to Lincoln's rise. A significant piece of Lincoln and presidential history.

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🎎 THE JAPANESE AMBASSADORS
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🎎 FRONT PAGE — "THE JAPANESE AMBASSADORS IN THEIR STATE COSTUME" — WITH ARTICLE
A front-page illustration and article on the Japanese diplomatic ambassadors in their formal state costume — continuing Harper's Weekly's documentation of the first Japanese diplomatic mission to the United States. A significant piece of American-Japanese diplomatic 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 ··············· June 2, 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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