Election Year Campaign Powder Horn by Stark Tansel ©

Foreword: Most major schools of carved American powder horns have interesting “sub-sets” within their body of work, and the Tansel powder horns are no exception. Within the known Tansel horns, there are smaller groups with Masonic influences, religious images, exotic animals, and perhaps the most often seen, election year campaign horns. Campaign horns appeared during the presidential election years and made a political statement about the owner’s favorite candidate. An interesting “General Zachary Taylor” horn attributed to Stark Tansel provides a good example of an election campaign horn, and more importantly, a good study piece for determining how its attribution was made.

Figure No.1: This late 1849 Tansel powder horn is noteworthy for its oversized horse & rider figure that almost overshadows the eagle. Underneath the figure are the words “Generel (sic) Zachary Taylor/1849.” The eagle helps support the Stark Tansel attribution. Perimeter shading of the eagle's wing feathers and the odd flowers in the eagle's claw suggest Stark Tansel carved the horn, along with the large, well-defined horse. The separated top feathers on each wing help date this horn; they usually show up on horns made after 1845 and became more common as the years progressed. Author’s collection.

The First Political Horns: Most powder horn collectors are familiar with Tansel powder horns made in Kentucky between about 1800 and 1829 and later in Indiana from 1829 until about 1852. A sub-set of Tansel horns that appeals to a selective group of collectors is the campaign horns made during presidential election years. Several earlier horns have Andrew Jackson on them, but they are more a memorial to Jackson's victory at the Battle of New Orleans that ended the War of 1812 than actual campaign horns. The first real election year horns began appearing in 1840 when General William H. Harrison was the Whig candidate. Francis Tansel had served under Harrison at Ft. Meigs in late 1813, and Harrison seemed to remain a hero figure to the Tansel family to the end of their carving days. Election year horns continued to be popular during the 1844 and 1848 campaigns, highlighting both presidential and/or vice-presidential candidates from both parties… and particularly those with Kentucky ties.

Split Allegiances: Both Whig and Democrat candidates appear on Tansel horns. An interesting point when attributing unsigned Tansel horns is that Timothy and oldest brother John were strong Whigs, while middle brother Stark was a "staunch Democrat" according to family lore. While the Tansel carvers at times crossed party lines to carve horns [yes, they bent a little to make a dollar back then] for neighbors that supported the “other” party, it appears most Whig-related horns were made by Timothy, and most Democrat-related horns were by Stark. It should be noted that oldest brother John, perhaps the best of the 2nd generation Tansel carvers, apparently stopped carving horns about 1840, based on the lack of signed horns [or unsigned horns distinctively in his hand] from that time forward.

Figure No.2: The large horse figure, seen here with more of its body visible, is relatively well proportioned. Timothy's horses often had more of a cartoonish look, especially in the head/face and hooves. Also note the cross-hatched shading in the basal scallops on this late horn. While both Stark and Timothy used cross-hatching, Stark did so more often, particularly on his later horns. Author’s collection.

Figure No.3: Note the thick line, or "ground," below the horse's hooves. Stark was more prone than Timothy to add these strips of grass or earth under his large figures of both horses and humans. Note the "fish mouth" on the throat and how cleanly the two cuts meet to form the "V," common in Stark's work. Many of Timothy's later horns had sloppier, over-run cuts in the "V" corners. Author’s collection.

Democrat or Whig: The “General Zachary Taylor” horn should be educational for those interested not only in election year horns, but also early political memorabilia. It supports Zachary Taylor, but the horn was not carved until 1849, after he was elected president, so was it really an election year campaign horn, or just a horn a customer ordered to support a man he admired? To muddy the waters even more, Taylor was an independent individual, being a southerner who owned over 100 slaves on his plantation in Mississippi, did not fight to abolish slavery in the south, but was a strong advocate for the union and against southern secession. He also took a strong stance against the further spread of slavery into new territories and states joining the Union, particularly those later formed within the territory gained by the United States in the Mexican War. He won the 1848 election on his sacrifices and victories in the Mexican War, rather than any strong party affiliation, although he was drafted and ran on the Whig ticket... winning by a narrow margin. The prior president and his commander-in-chief, President Polk, thought Taylor was too Whig-ish while a general, and after being elected some Whigs thought he leaned too far toward the Democrats.

Building an Attribution: While unsigned, this horn is attributed to Stark Tansel, the lone Democrat among the brothers who carved horns. Stark and Timothy, the last two Tansel horn carvers, lived close together during their early years in Hendricks County, Indiana, after arriving in 1829. Their brother John and father Francis lived a short distance to the east across the county line in Marion County. Years later Stark moved to northwestern Marion County, but his early Indiana years working near Timothy ensured the two horn carvers’ work would remain similar over their entire carving careers, making unsigned horns difficult to attribute at times. But small differences in their work, when present, allow attributions to be made. Several of those differences are present on the Taylor horn and highlighted in the images’ captions, leading to the conclusion that this “Generel Zachary Taylor” horn was, in fact, carved by Stark Tansel.

Figure No.4: This view shows the name of the mounted military figure and the date the horn was carved. Both Timothy and Stark made their letters virtually the same, but the less literate Timothy at times reversed letters or spelled words phonetically. The “Generel” spelling is found on a similar horn dated “1848” and attributed to Stark, so his spelling wasn’t perfect. Author’s collection.

Summary: Tansel horns made in the Indiana period of 1829 to about 1852 became more similar as the years went by. The later post-1840 horns by the brothers Stark and Timothy became almost indistinguishable in appearance. But small differences in several of the “standard” Tansel figures allows an attribution to be made. After close examination of those figures, the “General Zachary Taylor” horn is attributed to the hand of Stark Tansel.