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100773 | UNITED STATES. Grover Cleveland white metal Inaugural Token.

$435.00Price
  • Details

    100773 | UNITED STATES. Grover Cleveland white metal Satirical Inaugural Token. Issued 1885. Commemorating his victory and inauguration (28mm, 5.79 g, 12h). Possibly by J. N. T. Levick.

     

    Bison (former mayor of Buffalo, Grover Cleveland) butting left; BEEF / TAKES THE / PRESIDENTIAL CHAIR / MARCH 4 1885 / R. R. R. / DID IT in six lines below / Harpy (with the head of James G. Blaine), standing atop tail of serpent bearing UNITED SOUTH; I SAY NOTHING BECAUSE - I HAVE NOTHING TO SAY across field; RENEGADE PRESS / FREE TRADERS / DEPENDENTS in three lines below. Edge: Plain.

     

    DeWitt GC-1884-11. Mint State. Incredibly lustrous and prooflike surfaces, with some lightly scattered marks. A great "double barreled" satirical issue following the 1884 presidential election.

     

    This interesting satirical piece focuses upon the 1884 U.S. presidential election and its aftermath, a match which pitted the Democrat Grover Cleveland against the Republican James G. Blaine. The bison and "beef" refers to Cleveland, a former mayor of Buffalo, New York, and a man of sizable girth, while the "R.R.R." refers to a pivotal speech made by Rev. Dr. Samuel Burchard, a Blaine supporter. During the final week of the campaign, Blaine attended a meeting at which the former stated that "...we are Republicans, and don't propose to leave our party and identify ourselves with the party whose antecedents have been rum, Romanism, and rebellion." A decided anti-Catholic sentiment, this caused the Irish and Catholic vote in important electoral areas such as New York to be energized against the Blaine campaign, detrimental in what was a very close election. The reverse alludes to the strength of the southern vote in electing Cleveland, with the entirety of the "United South" backing the democrat. Meanwhile, atop the southern serpent perches a harpy with the facial features of Blaine, looking glumly over his defeat. Even muckraking makes an appearance, referred to on this medal as the "renegade press." A delightful and historical type with much to say.

     

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