A Patriotic Pie

Library Company of Philadelphia

A patriotic pie

In 1864, New York-based lithographer Thomas W. Strong published a series of circular die-cut prints intended to inspire devotion to the Union in the youngsters who collected them as souvenirs. Called “patriotic pies” for their content and appearance by the Library Company of Philadelphia, which houses a collection of Strong’s work, the two-sided prints tell tales of bravery, duty, and love of country, with colorful illustrations on the front and accompanying verses on the back. The example shown here, titled “The Soldier Boy,” is about a fictional child named “Willie,” a sterling student with a bright life ahead of him. To his father’s delight, young Willie declares his intention to join the army: “I’ll onward march wherever led, / And prove my country’s pride, / Hurrah! I’ll be / The brave and free / Whatever fate betide!” To drive its lesson home, the story ends with the following pitch to its child-readers: “So Willie, great in books and work, / And great in valor too, / Goes onward to the glorious mark, / That all should strive to do; / And you must try / With him to vie / And be as honored too.”