The Spirit of '76 Yankee Doodle, 1776

Archibald Willard, 1836-1918, was an Ohio artist who created a partnership with the publisher and photographer, James F. Ryder, before the Civil War. After his service, he continued his partnership with Ryder who successfully sold many of the sketches Willard had done during the war.

His most famous painting was originally painted as a 8 x 10 mural and he named it "Yankee Doodle." It was painted for the first Centennial Exposition held in Philadelphia. His mural was started in 1875 in an upstairs bedroom in his home. It was soon decided that a move to a professional studio would be appropriate and he moved to Cleveland and took up residence in the studio of Willis Adams. As a result of the move, Willard's father Samuel, became the model for the old drummer.

After the mural was shown several times, it was suggested that he change the name from "Yankee Doodle" to avoid the association with its origins as a British song used to poke fun at the Americans. The suggestion was "The Spirit of '76" and Willard reluctantly agreed. Historically, the Yankee Doodle tune was created by the British but it was quickly adopted by the Americans as theirs and it quickly became an expression of American patriotism. Willard painted several smaller versions of what had became known as "The Spirit of '76."

Title: Yankee doodle 1776 / A.M. Willard. Creator(s): Willard, Archibald M., 1836-1918, artist. Related Names: Ryder, James F., 1826-1904 , publisher. Date Created/Published: Cleveland, Ohio : Pub. by J.F. Ryder, c1876. Medium: 1 print : chromolithograph. Summary: Print shows three patriots, two playing drums and one playing a fife, leading troops into battle. Based on the painting called the "Spirit of '76." Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-pga-03609 (digital file from original print) LC-DIG-ppmsca-05936 (digital file from original print) LC-USZC4-694 (color film copy transparency) LC-USZ62-5330 (b&w film copy neg.) Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication.

This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. This applies to the United States, where Works published prior to 1978 were copyright protected for a maximum of 75 years. See Circular 1 "COPYRIGHT BASICS" PDF. Works published before 1923, in this case c1876, are now in the public domain.

These images are also in the public domain in countries that figure copyright from the date of death of the artist (post mortem auctoris), in this case Archibald Willard, 1836-1918, and that most commonly runs for a period of 50 to 70 years from the last day of that year.

Call Number: PGA - Clay, Cosack & Co.--Yankee doodle 1776 (C size) [P&P] Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.

Notes: 3383G U.S. Copyright Office. Title from item. Entered according to act of Congress by J.F. Ryder in the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington, D.C. in the year 18[76]. Exhibited: "Moving Pictures : The Un-easy Relationship between American Art and Early Film" at the Williams College of Art, MA, and other venues, 2005-2007.

Subjects: Patriotism--1870-1880. United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--Commemoration. Format: Chromolithographs--Color--1870-1880. Collections: Popular Graphic Arts

TEXT CREDIT: The Library of Congress