Civil War Envelope
(GLC 08416.04)
In this Pro-Union satire Virginian electors are pictured casting their vote for or against the Union. Voters who decide to vote against the Union are encouraged by force to change their minds.
On October 24, 1861, residents of thirty-nine counties in western Virginia approved the formation of a new Unionist state. The accuracy of these election results have been questioned, since Union troops were stationed at many of the polls to prevent Confederate sympathizers from voting. At the Constitutional Convention, which met in Wheeling from November 1861 to February 1862, delegates selected the counties for inclusion in the new state of West Virginia. (reference: http://www.wvculture.org/history/statehoo.html)
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