Thanksgiving Day, "I'd make a dandy girl," from the Terrors of America set (N136) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco 1888 - 1889

This small chromolithograph was created around the turn of the century by W. Duke, Sons & Co. as a promotional item for Honest Long Cut Tobacco. Titled "Thanksgiving Day, "I'd make a dandy girl," the print presents a boy dressed in a woman's clothing. During this period, cross-dressing was deployed in popular culture as a source of humor, and the phrase “I’d make a dandy girl” plays on the era’s rigid gender roles. This performance raises questions about identity, particularly the constraints placed on boys and men to conform to norms of masculinity. The image is also reflective of a specific cultural moment in American history, a time of rapid social change and evolving understandings of gender. The boy seems cheerful and confident; perhaps he’s discovering an alternative version of himself. This is a moment of personal expression, a reflection of a society grappling with its own evolving identity.