Infantry, United States Army, 1810, from the Military Series (N224) issued by Kinney Tobacco Company to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes 1888

This ‘Infantry, United States Army, 1810’ card was made by the Kinney Tobacco Company to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes. It is made of paper, and would have been printed using chromolithography, a method that allowed for the mass production of color images. As we contemplate this small paper rectangle, it is easy to forget that it reflects much larger economic systems. It may seem a far cry from the battlefield to a pack of cigarettes, but the links are there: the tobacco industry fueled by mass consumption, the military protecting American economic interests. This card represents the industrial processes that drive both. It is not fine art, but rather ephemera, a minor artifact. Yet, even through its disposability, the image provides a glimpse into early 19th-century American identity, and the ways in which images like this one help to shape our understanding of history.