The reason I collected it: The John-Donkey – 1848…

October 30, 2023 by  
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While historic events & people–whether they be tragic, heroic, or celebratory–are the domain for most collectors, venturing out of this arena into the small world of comic and satire magazines can be a refreshing change.

This title is a great example, and in my 47 years of collecting newspapers this is the only issue I have encountered. It lasted but 29 weekly issues in 1848. Its significance is such that Frank L. Mott, in his book “A History of American Magazines, 1741-1850”, devoted a chapter to this title.

A few comments from his book include: “…John-Donkey always maintained the tradition of his stupidity… he claimed only to be stupid and was continually trying to prove his stupidity…Most of John-Donkey’s articles, long and short, were satires upon contemporary events or fads, upon organizations, movements, and persons. Politics were prominent…The first page of each issue bore a series of pictures of John Donkey himself in various attitudes…Each number contained a political cartoon, full pate in size, and printed on an unbacked leaf [the print in this issue of ‘The Pennsylvania Thimble-Rigger’, blank on the reverse]…  It is very probable that the seven libel suits filed against the John-Donkey in May had something to do with its demise…”. The photos below is of the issue dated March 11, 1848 – the one I collected.

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Filed under: Noteworthy Issues, Pre Civil War, The Collectible Community
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