Challenging
Civil War hero Ulysses S. Grant, Horatio Seymour carried the Democratic banner
as their presidential nominee in the election of 1868. Born in Utica, New York in 1810, Seymour quickly
matured into an uncompromising “Democrat by education, by tradition, and by
instinct.”[1] His bid for the presidency began during his
days working in Tammany Hall under the influence of giants of the Democratic
Party such as Martin Van Buren and Governor William Marcy. He steadily climbed the New York political
ladder, serving as a state legislator, Mayor of Utica, and Governor of New York
during the 1850s and 1860s. Seated as
Chairman of the Democratic National Convention in July 1868, Seymour oversaw
the adoption of the party platform. Then,
after a divided delegation, compromising measures, and eighteen roll calls,
Seymour was eventually unanimously nominated as the Democratic candidate for
president.[2] While public campaigning or “stumping” was
not appropriate for a political candidate in this era, Seymour’s team worked diligently
to spread their name and message through a variety of avenues. A closer look at the campaign memorabilia
used during Seymour’s race to the White House unveils his primary missions:
ensuring white supremacy and a renewed commitment to Jacksonian economic and
social ideas.
Wear It!
From
ferrotype pins, patriotic ribbons, coin-like lapel buttons, and charms, Horatio
Seymour’s campaign distributed thousands of accessories that all proudly
displayed his portrait. The two brass
pins (pictured right and left) were commonly worn by both men and women on jackets or
scarves. 
The more decorative, colorful, and
flashy pieces (pictured right and below) were appropriate accessories for rallies,
political conventions, or election week…all collectively serving as a Gilded
Age “Get Out the Vote” tactic!
Some pieces of campaign memorabilia, like the silver medallion
pictured here, sparked criticism due to its racist nature. This
charm was proudly engraved with Seymour’s campaign slogan: “This is a White
Man’s Government.” Additionally, sayings
such as “Our Motto: This is a White Man’s Country: Let White Men Rule” were
stitched into ribbons and other campaign paraphernalia. These pieces should not
surprise the modern viewer as “the Seymour-Grant
1868 election was the most overt racist Presidential contest until the 1948
Dixiecrats.”[3] Indeed, Seymour was committed to using his
platform as a presidential nominee to promote (and publish) the banner of “white
supremacy” and overtly oppose the Republican Reconstruction aims to bring civil
rights to freedmen.
Read It!
Posters like the ones shown here were popular forms of campaign propaganda. The colored banner pictures the two candidates underscored by a common Democratic slogan utilized in the 1868 race: “Peace, Union, and Constitutional Government.” Strategically, the dual images featured a farmer’s plow and a worker’s anvil and expressed a distinct political message for the 1868 Democrats. As one historian aptly noted, “Seymour subscribed to the political philosophy of Jefferson- a real “reliance on freeholding farmers and artisans.”[4] His commitment to the “working hands” of America was clearly communicated through printed materials like this poster, demonstrating his “sympathy with the wants and interests of our mechanics and laborers” as well as a unique determination to preserve “the farmers of the State.”[5]
A plethora of cartoons were published in newspapers during the
1868 election. The image pictured below
predicted Seymour’s victory as his glowing head hovered above the White House
while gazing down upon a befuddled, struggling train of Republican leaders. Seymour’s public supporters (like the pro-Democratic
newspaper The Globe) used pictures
like this to reach a wide audience and communicate a strong message to the 1868
voter bloc: the Republicans are corrupt, confused, and controlling.
Sing It!
By the mid to late 19th
century, upbeat tunes praising both candidate and party were a popular addition
to any presidential campaign. Seymour’s
race was no exception. Published by J.L.
Peters during the election year, “Matched!” was the most notable campaign song
for Democrats in 1868. Adapted to the
melody “E Pluribus Unum,” its lyrics proudly proclaimed:
We give them a statesman of honor
and fame
Just the Man for the work of the
hour
By our platform we’ll win
By a leader whose name Stands aloft
an impregnable tower!
This jingle went on
to laud their ticket and predict a sweeping victory:
Republican bluster will all end in
smoke!
For our ballots will tell them a
tale;
We have slumbered awhile, it is time
we awoke
Give Democracy flag to the
gale!
Other songs pushed the edge with more controversial content, containing
what some claimed to be “bigoted” and “brandish” lyrics. These tunes functioned as 19th century
campaign ads, slamming the opponent and pompously touting party ideology. As one author wrote, “music supporting
Seymour worried about Grant becoming a military dictator and complained that he
was a foolish tool of other Republican politicians.”[6] These songs, such as “The White Man’s Banner,”
contained “off-color” mantras that “played on racial prejudices.”[7] Their lyrics included phrases charging voters
to “vindicate our Father’s choice, A White Man’s Government” and satirically
saluted “Captain Grant of the Black Marines, the Stupidest man that was ever
seen.”[8] While public “bickering” and “backstabbing”
was dishonorable, personal slights set to a melody could pass as a little more “politically
correct.”
The plethora of campaign memorabilia found today shows that although Seymour’s bid for the White House was unsuccessful, it was a well-fought race that utilized every tool and tactic at his disposal. For more information on Horatio Seymour’s personal life, public image, or presidential bid, see the bibliography/suggested reading list below!
Bibliography and Suggested Reading
On The Personal and
Political Life of Horatio Seymour (with primary sources embedded)…
Croly, David Goodman. Seymour
and Blair, Their Lives and Services. New York: Richardson and Company,
1868.
McCabe, Jr., James D. The
Life and Public Services of Horatio Seymour: Together with a Complete and
Authentic Life of Francis P. Blair, Jr. New York: United States Publishing
Company, 1868.
Seitz, Don C. The “Also
Rans”: Great Men Who Missed Making the Presidential Goal. New York: Thomas
Crowell Company, 1928.
Seymour, Horatio. “Horatio Seymour’s Letter of Acceptance of the
Nomination for the Presidency.” The
Vicennes Weekly Western Sun.
August 15, 1868.
"Horatio Seymour." Oneida County Historical Society. http://www.oneidacountyhistory.org/PublicFigures/LeadersFeatureArticle.asp (accessed on April 26, 2015).
On The 1868 Presidential Election….
“Democratic Party Platform of 1868.” The American Presidency
Project. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=29579
(accessed on April 26, 2015).
Roseboom, Eugene H. From
George Washington to John F. Kennedy: A History of Presidential Election.
New York: The Macmillan Company, 1957.
On Seymour-Blair Campaign Memorabilia…
“Election of 1868.” American Political Buttons. http://americanpoliticalbuttons.com/election-of-1868.html
(accessed on April 26, 2015).
Le Hache, Theodore and F. M.
Bigney. “White Man’s Banner!” New
Orleans: A.E. Blackmar, 1868.
Miles, William. Songs, Odes,
Glees, Ballad: A Bibliography of American Presidential Campaign Songsters. Westport,
Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1990.
Pepper, John and H. Werne. “Seymour,
Blair, and Victory!” St. Louis, Missouri: Balmer and Weber, 1868.
Schoening,
Benjamin S. and Eric T. Kasper,
Don't Stop Thinking About the Music: The
Politics of Songs and Musicians in Presidential Campaigns. Lanham, Maryland:
Lexington Books, 2012.
Slater, Tom. Political and Americana Memorabilia. Dallas: Heritage Galleries and
Auctioneers, 2005.
[1] David Goodman Croly, Seymour and Blair, Their Lives and Services (New York: Richardson and Company, 1868), 10.
[2] Ibid.
