John A. Logan, from the series Great Americans (N76) for Duke brand cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 × 1 1/2 in. (7 × 3.8 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ephemera
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick
Accession Number
63.350.204.76.33
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with this petite chromolithograph, *John A. Logan, the series Great Americans (76)*, produced by W. Duke, & Co. in 1888. Measuring just 2¾ × 1½ inches, this colorful trade card features the likeness of John A. Logan, a Civil War Union general and Illinois senator known for his leadership and political influence. Issued inside Duke cigarette packs, it was part of a popular series honoring American heroes, blending patriotism with clever marketing. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized commercial printing by allowing vivid, mu...
About the Artist
W. Duke, Sons & Co. · 1870–1920
**W. Duke, Sons & Co.: Pioneers of Chromolithographic Trade Card Art** W. Duke, Sons & Co., an American tobacco manufacturer, emerged from the entrepreneurial vision of Washington Duke (1820–1905) and his sons in Durham, North Carolina. After the Civil War, Washington abandoned farming in 1874 to join his eldest son, Brodie L. Duke, in the burgeoning tobacco trade, establishing a factory that for...