The Great Know Nothing Song, ‘I Don’t Know.’
- Single sheet measuring 6 x 9 ½ inches
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: H. J. Kehr, 1850
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: H. J. Kehr, 1850. Single sheet measuring 6 x 9 ½ inches. Marginal wear; excellent.. A broadside with the lyrics to Francis F. Eastlack’s “The Great Know Nothing Song, ‘I Don’t Know.’” The song lampooned the American Party, known as the “Know Nothing” party for its members’ practice of saying they “knew nothing” in response to any questions regarding specifics about the party. Eastlack describes the Know Nothings:
“These men wear white hats all turned up, and at you boldly stare, sir,
They only speak with nods and winks, and never comb their hair, sir,
They beat both Whigs and Democrats, wherever they may go, sir,
And if you ask them any thing they’ll answer, I don’t know, sir.”
The Know Nothing platform was anti-Catholic, populist, and deeply split over slavery. Though several Know Nothings were elected to congress in the 1850s, the party had largely declined by the start of the 1860s.
We find 17 copies of this broadside on OCLC. Of interest to historians of the party, especially its popular reception.
“These men wear white hats all turned up, and at you boldly stare, sir,
They only speak with nods and winks, and never comb their hair, sir,
They beat both Whigs and Democrats, wherever they may go, sir,
And if you ask them any thing they’ll answer, I don’t know, sir.”
The Know Nothing platform was anti-Catholic, populist, and deeply split over slavery. Though several Know Nothings were elected to congress in the 1850s, the party had largely declined by the start of the 1860s.
We find 17 copies of this broadside on OCLC. Of interest to historians of the party, especially its popular reception.