From the Girls and Children series (N58) promoting Our Little Beauties Cigarettes for Allen & Ginter brand tobacco products 1887

This promotional trading card for Allen & Ginter brand tobacco products is part of the “Girls and Children” series. It reflects the late 19th-century marketing strategies that capitalized on sentimental imagery. Here, we see a young child adorned in what is meant to be traditional Scottish Highland dress. This costume signifies the romanticization of cultures far removed from the American experience. This romanticism was a hallmark of the time. The soft depiction of childhood innocence is juxtaposed with the commercial promotion of tobacco, creating a jarring dissonance for the contemporary viewer. These cards functioned within a culture of collecting and display, subtly normalizing tobacco use. In this seemingly innocent portrait there is an emotional appeal to an imagined past, carefully constructed to engage consumers. These depictions, in their own way, shaped perceptions of both childhood and cultural identity, revealing much about the values and strategies prevalent in their time.