Medalet promoting Horace Greeley for president, 1872. Brass. DeWitt HG 1872-10. Holed for suspension. OBV: Bust of Greeley to right; inscription around, THE SAGE OF CHAPPAQUA; below, H. GREELEY, stars left and right. REV: Displayed eagle, inscription around, GREELEY. BROWN. & AMNESTY.
Greeley, the eccentric editor of the New York Tribune and one of the founders of the Republican Party, was chosen by a breakaway faction of Republicans fed up with the corruption of the Grant administration. The Democratic Party was in disarray and failed to unite behind a candidate. Hoping to appeal to Southern Democrats, Greeley favored amnesty for ex-Confederate and an end to Reconstruction. The dissenters were little match for Grant's reelection juggernaut, however, and the Greeley-Brown ticket lost in a landslide. Exhausted by the campaign, Greeley died just weeks after the election.
Items from Greeley's ill-fated presidential campaign are prized by collectors and seldom appear on the market. We offer a choice specimen of the signature Greeley campaign token.
Note: Natural patina may vary from example shown.
