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Symbols & Mascots
Reviving Harrison-style rustic imagery, supporters of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 began calling him the “rail splitter.” Emphasizing their candidate’s humble origins on the Kentucky frontier, they firmly associated him with the honest, hard working, and independent-minded woodsman. At the same time, “Wide-Awake” parades were becoming wildly popular. The “Wide-Awake” movement was an organization of military-style marching clubs. Participants wore military regalia (sometimes even featuring the letter “A” for Abe), and marched at night in precise ranks. Some parades included tens of thousands of marchers. An offshoot of the “Wide-Awake” movement, the “Rail Splitters” marched in similar fashion, carrying wooden axes like this one, to rally support for “Honest Abe.”
Abraham Lincoln Wooden Parade Axe, 1860.