Miss Democracty
date: label: date made
content: 1896
label: date made
content: circa 1896
label: associated date
content: 1896
name: label: associated person
content: Bryan, William Jennings
label: maker
content: Berryman, Clifford
notes: label: Description
content: The object is a political cartoon hand-drawn on white paper about 1896 by Clifford Berryman in Washington, D.C. It depicts Miss Democracy holding a sign that reads "Durham, N.H. May 2 Amateur hypnotist puts friend to sleep, fails to arouse him" and is quoted as saying "It can be done all right!" William Jennings Bryan and the year 1896 are shown as being either in her mind or in the clouds. The drawing is signed "Berryman" in the lower right area of the illustration.
label: Description
content: Bryan was the Democratic Party's nominee for the 1896 Presidential campaign but his popularity was more in the West and with farmers than in New England where William McKinley was strongly favored. Therefore, it is possible Miss Democracy was suggesting a lack of confidence in a Bryan victory. And, in fact, McKinley won New Hampshire by an overwhelming majority.
label: Description
content: Berryman was known to use allegorical or symbolic figures such as Uncle Sam, Miss Democracy (always shown by Berryman as a bespectacled old woman with corkscrew curls), the Bee, or the Teddy Bear in his work to signify values, sentiments, or concerns. Here, he is using Miss Democracy to represent the voice of the American people.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: District of Columbia
label: referenced
content: United States: New Hampshire, Durham
topic: label: depicted
content: Political Caricatures
label: general subject association
content: Presidential Candidates
label: general subject association
content: Political Campaigns
label: related event
content: Presidential Campaign of 1896
setName: label: See more items in
content: Political History: Political History, Campaign Collection
label: See more items in
content: Government, Politics, and Reform
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Miss Florence S Berryman
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: PL.322733.037
label: catalog number
content: 322733.037
label: accession number
content: 322733
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Cartoon
label: Object Name
content: political cartoon
label: Object Type
content: editorial cartoons
label: Object Type
content: cartoons
label: Object Type
content: Drawing
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: ink (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: hand-drawn (overall production method/technique)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 14 1/4 in x 13 1/2 in; 36.195 cm x 34.29 cm