The War of 1812 in American Caricature with Dr. Allison Stagg

This lecture will consider key events from the War of 1812 by exploring satirical visual imagery. Political cartoons were printed with immediacy to capitalize on sensational events and to mock prominent politicians and figures, while extolling pride in the American cause. Caricatures of this period although printed in haste, show how people in America responded to the War of 1812. Rarely are such prints considered in American history dialogue, yet such images are vital documents that provide viewers with the opinions of the every-day citizen in the early 1800s. In focusing on caricatures produced during this period, this lecture considers the “peoples story” of the War of 1812 through a series of visually humorous images.

Allison Stagg received a Ph.D. in Art History from University College London. Her work has been supported by numerous grants, including awards from the New-York Historical Society, New York Public Library, and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Dr. Stagg is a recipient of the Jane and Morgan Whitney fellowship at the Metropolitan Museum of Art 2011-12 to edit her Ph.D. dissertation, “The Art of Wit: Political Caricature in the United States 1780-1830” for publication.

These Speakers in the Humanities events, which are free and open to the public, are made possible through the support of the New York Council for the Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities