Irish group opposes Hall of Fame for Thomas Nast, famed Morristown illustrator
Posted by Kevin Coughlin on December 14, 2011 · Leave a Comment
He gave us Santa Claus, the Democratic donkey and the Republican elephant. And he helped topple New York’s infamous Boss Tweed.
'The Usual Irish Way of Doing Things,' by Thomas Nast, in Harper's Weekly, 1871. An Irish-American group says Nast should not be considered for the New Jersey Hall of Fame because of illustrations like this one.
But one of Morristown’s favorite sons is no favorite of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, who are demanding that 19th-century illustrator Thomas Nast be removed as a nominee for the New Jersey Hall of Fame.
The state chapter of the Irish-American organization and a pair of state legislators maintain that Nast–whose Santa illustrations are on display at Morristown’s Macculloch Hall Historical Museum–was bigoted against Irish immigrants, Catholics and African Americans, reports NewJerseyNewsroom.com.
Thomas Nast's Santa is on exhibit at Macculloch Hall Historical Museum in Morristown.
This is Thomas Nast’s third time on the online public ballot, which this year also includes philanthropist Doris Duke, economist Milton Friedman and former Gov. Tom Kean, among others.
Sean Pender, state chapter president of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, told NJNewsroom it’s “hard to believe” that Nast could be a candidate for accolades.
The Hall of Fame’s director, Don Smith, told The Star-Ledger that the public nominated Nast and that anti-Irish illustrations were a small fraction of his work. The illustrator attacked the Irish for supporting Tammany Hall, Don told the paper, adding: “If it had been another group, he would have attacked them.”
