Call Number:

3656

Repository:

Historical Society of Pennsylvania

Extent:

1.5 linear feet (; 5 boxes, 1 flat file)

Language:

English

Preferred Citation:

Cite as: [Indicate cited item or series here], Charles H. Sykes papers (Collection 3656), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

Date:

1909-1942 (bulk) and 1836-1942 (inclusive)

Creator:

Sykes, Charles Henry, 1882-1942

Abstract:

Charles H. "Bill" Sykes was a political cartoonist for Philadelphia's Evening Public Ledger newspaper from the 1910s to 1942. Born in Alabama in 1882, he received a degree from the Drexel Institute and worked for many prominent publications, including Life magazine. This collection features a group of original political cartoons for the Evening Public Ledger drawn in crayon, pencil, and india ink. Most of the original artwork depicts the build-up to World War II and the early months of U.S. involvement in the war. The collection also includes numerous newspaper clippings of his political cartoons, some personal correspondence, ephemera, and miscellaneous drawings (including several patriotic drawings for Philco).

Charles Henry "Bill" Sykes was born in Athens, Alabama on November 12, 1882. He attended the Drexel Institute of Art, Science and Industry (now Drexel University) and graduated in 1904. Early in his career as an artist and political cartoonist, he worked for the North American (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) the Williamsport News (Williamsport, Pennsylvania) and the Nashville Banner (Nashville, Tennessee). In 1911, he returned to Philadelphia and began an extensive career with the Public Ledger (later the Evening Public Ledger). Throughout the 1920s, Sykes also provided illustrations for Life at editor Charles Dana Gibson's behest. Additionally, he provided cartoons for Collier's, and some of his work was picked up by the New York Evening Post.

Sykes worked for the Public Ledger and other outlets until his death on December 19, 1942. During that time he illustrated everything from local governmental and societal issues to two world wars. Charles Sykes married Charlotte Hannum of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, and together they had three sons: John, Charles II, and William.

The Charles H. Sykes papers is housed in five boxes and one flat file, and it primarily spans from the early to mid twentieth century. A few document fall outside this range, such as a copy of the first page of the first edition of the Public Ledger published March 25, 1836. The collection documents, mostly through images, Sykes's career with the Public Ledger/ Evening Public Ledger. His work with the Nashville Banner and Life are also represented, but to a much lesser extent.

Prior to its arrival at HSP, the collection had been inventoried and letter or number designations were assigned to different groups of manuscripts. The overall order of the collection has been maintained and paper inventories can be found in some of the boxes and folders.

Housed in Box 1 are assorted manuscripts with "M" numbers. Among these papers are articles, original drawings, incoming correspondence, programs, clippings, and other ephemera that cover the bulk of Sykes's career generally. Sykes's correspondence, consisting mostly of letters of appreciation, includes letters from several notable figures, such as F. B. I. head J. Edgar Hoover, artist Charles Dana Gibson, Pennsylvania governor Gifford Pinchot, politician and explorer Hiram Bingham, and Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, among others. Taking up the rest of Box 1 and most of Box 2 are several folders of chronologically arranged cartoons that were clipped from the Evening Public Ledger. (Based on the existing inventories, it is believed that these cartoons fell under the "M10" designation.) The cartoons date from 1908 to 1922 and they cover national issues, such as World War I, as well as events local to Philadelphia, such as the election of Republican reform Mayor Rudolph Blankenberg in 1912.

In Boxes 3 to 5 are sixty-eight original political cartoons (drawn in crayon, pencil, and india ink on board) that Sykes created for the Evening Public Ledger. Most of the cartoons depict the build-up to World War II and the early months of American involvement in the war. Each cartoon had been numbered (without letter designations), and that order has been maintained. Five original works, however, fall outside this numbered schema and have been designated D1 to D5. The "D" works are those Sykes created for Philco, a company that was involved in war production. All except D4 can be found in Box 5. D4, a drawing titled "Burglars at Bay," is the largest of the drawings and can be found in Flat File 1.

Box 5 also contains several folders of unnumbered, non-inventoried artworks (drawings and paintings) by Sykes. They include miscellaneous images, as well as a couple of cartoons.