Nerves were on edge as the balloting ended in the highly contested Election of 1876 between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel Tilden. The voting took place on November 7, and by November 8 enough votes had been counted that many white people in Richmond began to celebrate the victory of Democrat Samuel Tilden over Republican Rutherford B. Hayes.
This article from the Nov. 9, 1876 Richmond Dispatch describes the tension in the city as people waited for word of the results to come in. It end with the “Rejoicing of the People.” Note: The article refers to the Democrats as the “Conservatives,” which was commonly done in the South because the Democrats were the conservative White party at the time.
Feature Illustration: The cartoon “A National Game That Is Played Out” by Thomas Nast appeared in Harper’s Weekly Dec. 23, 1876. The cartoon depicts the ballot box as a football being kicked around by politicians.
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