HarpWeek Political Cartoons

HarpWeek has an online collection of political cartoons from 14 presidential elections between the years 1860-1912.  These cartoons provide a visual insight into the climate surrounding the Election of 1860, and its core issues.  Some of the cartoons require a lot of prior historical knowledge, while others can be understood with some basic analysis.  HarpWeek has convienently provided an analysis and explanation of each cartoon.  There are other resources as well for the Election of 1860, including an overview of the historical context and a timeline of important events.  Any of these political cartoons would be beneficial to a classroom discussion of this crucial election.  This webpage provides a useful guide to using editorial cartoons in the classroom.