The pen and the pony: How this Oregon cartoonist shaped US politics and introduced Arabian horses to America

Some people argue that the impact of Homer Davenport’s editorial cartoons actually tilted the balance of the 1904 presidential election in favor of Theodore Roosevelt.

As we now find ourselves once again in a heated election year, how much has changed in the competitive political trenches over the last century? And how did this country boy from a small Oregon town of Silverton end up rubbing shoulders with America’s political elite at the dawn of the 20th century?

A country boy destined for fame

Davenport’s story begins a few miles outside of Silverton in the Waldo Hills, where he was born in 1867. His mother, Florinda Davenport, was an avid reader of Harper’s Weekly and an admirer of the world-famous political cartoonist Thomas Nast, known for his Civil War illustrations and noted as the “Father of the American Cartoon.” Florinda was certain that her boy could one day reach the same heights as Nast.

From the moment he was born, Florinda nurtured his creativity and encouraged him to draw every day. Tragically, she succumbed to tuberculosis when Davenport was only three years old. On her deathbed she extracted a promise from her husband, Timothy Davenport, to fulfill her dream for their son, and Timothy did just that.

As a boy, Davenport would draw on anything he could find, including old wooden apple boxes, barns, and various walls around town. One of his favorite subjects was Arabian horses. He dreamed of traveling across the world to eventually bring one back from Arabia.

The big break

In his early 20s, without any formal art training, Davenport landed a job in California as a caricature artist, bouncing around several newspapers, eventually landing at William Randolph Hearst’s paper San Francisco Examiner.

Hearst was a powerful businessman with political ambitions himself. He recognized Davenport’s exceptional talent, and in 1895 moved him to his New York paper, New York Evening Journal, as a presidential campaign was gearing up between William McKinley and William Jennings Bryan.

Some of Davenport’s most significant works were created during the McKinley vs. Bryan campaign, where Davenport zeroed in on McKinley’s campaign manager and head of the Republican National Committee, Marcus Alonzo Hanna.

“Homer would depict [Hanna] as this kind of obese guy with a checkered suit,” author and Davenport specialist Gus Frederick describes. “And every single check in the suit was a dollar mark. So he got the name Dollar Mark Hanna.”

Hanna was one of many lampooned by Davenport, who became both feared and admired by both sides of the political aisle. He quickly made a name for himself as a masterful observer of people. His acute wit could cut to the core of any hypocrisy or injustice with a single poignant image.

Eastern meets western

Theodore Roosevelt would eventually find himself in the crosshairs of Davenport’s pen, when he was depicted in the White House State Dining Room surrounded by a barbarous display of the numerous trophy animal heads he had hunted and killed.

But the tide turned when Davenport ended up working for a rival newspaper of Hearst’s that supported Roosevelt. The two eventually met and became good friends, both relating to each other’s love of the outdoors and the rugged country life of the American West.

When Roosevelt ran for reelection in 1904, facing a tough campaign ahead, Davenport created a realistic illustration of Uncle Sam placing his hand on Roosevelt’s shoulder, with a caption that read, “He’s good enough for me.” The image was a huge hit. It was mass-produced throughout the country, and even inspired a musical number promoting Roosevelt’s reelection.

After winning the election Roosevelt met with Davenport. Grateful for the artist’s powerful illustration, he thanked his friend and asked, “What can I do for you?”

Davenport revealed to Roosevelt that one of his longstanding ambitions was to import purebred Arabian horses to America and begin a breeding line. At the time, the world’s militaries were still cavalry based, and Arabian horses were considered prized military assets, making them very difficult to acquire from overseas. Roosevelt loved the idea, and immediately had a letter drawn up by his Secretary of State introducing Davenport to the leaders of the Ottoman Empire.

Davenport’s desert quest

Davenport set out on his quest to find seven Arabian horses. He returned from the Middle East with not just seven, but 27 Arabian horses. Davenport’s boyhood dream was fulfilled and he created the highly regarded line called the Davenport Arabians that exists to this day.

Along with being a cartoonist, Davenport was also a journalist and storyteller with the gift of gab. He traveled the world giving “chalk talk” lectures where he would illustrate his stories for audiences expounding upon the political intrigues of his day, and his adventures in the desert with Bedouin horse breeding tribes. He published several memoirs, including “My Quest for the Arab Horse”, and “The Country Boy” about his childhood growing up in Silverton, Oregon.

You can see a growing collection of original Homer Davenport artworks at the Silverton Country Historical Society, where they have a room dedicated to Davenport’s legacy.

There are also a couple Davenport books available that feature his most notable cartoons, including “The Annotated Cartoons By Homer C. Davenport” covering the period between 1895 and 1897, and “The Annotated The Dollar Or The Man?” with works created between 1899 and 1900 that observed the growing divide between the rich and poor. Both books are researched and compiled by Gus Frederick, President of the Silverton Country Historical Society.

To learn more

Homer Days Festival

Silverton Country Historical Society

Davenport Arabian Horse Conservancy