Israel Putnam, from the Great Generals series (N15) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands 1888

This is Israel Putnam, from the Great Generals series (N15) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes, a chromolithograph trade card. The image reflects the late nineteenth-century fashion for collecting and displaying, and the growing commercialization of American patriotism. Allen & Ginter, a Richmond, Virginia tobacco firm, produced this card as one in a series of collectible cards included in their cigarette packs, designed to encourage brand loyalty. Putnam, an officer in the French and Indian War and a major general in the Revolutionary War, is portrayed in his military uniform, complete with gold epaulettes. This card presents a romanticized, heroic image of Putnam and the American Revolution, designed to appeal to consumers' sense of national pride. These images often obscured more complex or contradictory aspects of the historical record. Understanding an image like this requires attention to its original context. Trade cards can offer valuable insights into popular culture, commercial practices, and the construction of historical memory, as well as contemporary art institutions and the history of collecting.