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1764 Election

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Benjamin Franklin’s electoral loss did not pass without mention. His allies justified it and his opponents rejoiced in it. Meanwhile prurient pamphlets personalized the results. Central to that turn were Isaac Hunt, the “one-man pamphlet shop,” and David James Dove, who figured heavily in the late-Paxton debate.
Isaac Hunt, The Election, a Medly (Philadelphia, 1764).
In this pro-Franklin cartoon, Isaac Hunt repurposes the plate used in Dove’s Paxton Expedition to caricature Presbyterians. One remarks, “We Pres[byteria]ns spring up like mushrooms,” while another adds, “and wither as soon.” Hunt embeds Dove (bottom center), accompanied by a black mistress to resurface rumors he circulated in Conference.
David James Dove, The Counter-Medly (Philadelphia, 1765).
In this pro-Paxton cartoon, Dove answers Hunt and assails Franklin by depicting Franklin as “agent” of the Devil (bottom center). A Paxtonian character on horseback remarks, “March on brave Germantonians,” framing the 1764 election as an electoral version of the Paxton march.

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  1. Battle at the Ballot Box: Royalization and the 1764 Election Will Fenton

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  1. The Paxton Expedition Will Fenton
  2. The Counter Medley Will Fenton
  3. The Election, a Medley Will Fenton

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