Does anyone know about this obscure Thomas Nast print from 1877?

June 6, 2025 by  
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Amongst our holdings is an obscure newspaper called “The People” from New York City, dated November 3, 1877. A closer look notes this is the volume 1, number 1 issue, and more curiously, we can find nothing about this newspaper online. This may be the only issue published, and with no mention of it in Gregory’s “Union List of American Newspapers” one wonders whether any institution is aware it even exists.

Compounding this obscurity is the large comic illustration (shown below) of John Morrissey, done by the famed artist Thomas Nast, verified by a small front page article headed: “Our Cartoon”. It verifies: “The accompanying admirable portrait of Our Great Municipal Reformer is one of the earliest made by Nast, and cost $100. It was engraved by a peculiar process which reversed the artist’s signature; but by holding it before the glass the Nast’s familiar handwriting will be recognized.”

Nothing can be found online of the existence of a Thomas Nast print captioned as noted above, let alone being in a newspaper titled: “The People”. With as much academic research that has been on this famed political artist, I find it interesting that nothing seems to be known of it.

So I reach out to all the Thomas Nast scholars, collectors, and admirers. Is anything out there that we are missing as to the existence of this print? Photos accompany this post. It exists; we just want to know more, and hopefully someone can be of help.

 

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Filed under: Illustrated Newspapers, Noteworthy Issues, Post Civil War, Questions for Collectors, The Collectible Community
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Comments

One Response to “Does anyone know about this obscure Thomas Nast print from 1877?”

  1. Roger Brady on June 6th, 2025 3:18 pm

    From an AI search.

    In 1877, “The People” was a socialist newspaper published in the United States, advocating for socialist ideas and working-class rights. While not explicitly a communist newspaper in the modern sense, it shared ideological roots with the communist movement and was considered a prominent voice in the socialist movement of that era.
    Here’s a more detailed look:

    “The People” was a socialist newspaper:
    .

    It was part of the broader socialist movement in the US, which included various socialist parties and publications.
    Not a communist newspaper in the modern sense:
    .
    While advocating for worker’s rights and socialist principles, it didn’t explicitly adhere to communist ideology as it developed later.
    A key publication in the socialist movement:
    .

    “The People” was a prominent voice for socialist ideas and played a role in shaping the socialist movement in the US.

    In summary, “The People” was a socialist newspaper published in 1877 that advocated for worker’s rights and socialist principles. It was a key publication in the socialist movement but not explicitly aligned with communist ideology as it later developed.

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