The British Influence on American Caricatures, 1790–1820

British visual satire published during the reign of King George III has been termed by scholars as “the golden age of caricature.” Indeed, there was an abundance of political and social caricature published and sold in London in the late eighteenth century. British politicians and royal figures provided enviable opportunities for caricaturists to visually mock, often resulting in a situation or a subject being presented numerous times by different authors.

This paper will take a different approach to these caricatures, focusing on the circulation and distribution of British caricatures in America. Between 1790 and 1820, there was a strong interest for British caricatures, as can be witnessed in numerous advertisements in American newspapers announcing the arrival of imported caricatures. I will examine the efforts of Philadelphia based printer, William Cobbett, and New Hampshire bookseller, Charles Peirce to import British caricatures and will show how both men provided venues for Americans to view, purchase, and even rent impressions of visual humor. In considering the technicalities of how caricatures circulate and comparing specific caricatures published on both continents, this paper will provide new insights on how British caricature influenced the American satirical print world.