Our Collection

At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Republican "Wide-Awake," sixth-plate ruby glass ambrotype, election of 1860

High-resolution images are available to schools and libraries via subscription to American History, 1493-1943. Check to see if your school or library already has a subscription. Or click here for more information. You may also order a pdf of the image from us here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC05187 Author/Creator: Place Written: [s.l.] Type: Photograph Date: 1860 ca. Pagination: 1 photograph 9.2 x 7.8 cm Order a Copy

Depicts a serious young man in a waterproof cap and cape, holding an oil torch. The image has been painted to suggest light from the torch. The "wide awakes" led processions supporting Lincoln in the election of 1860. Nevins "Emergence of Lincoln" p. 305 describes such a procession in New York. (Underneath the ambrotype in its case is a printed notice: "Photography, 1839-1889. From the Collection of Albert Raborn Phillips, Jr. 1940.")

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources