Adalbert J. Volck (1828–1912) was a

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofacial co ...

political cartoonist An editorial cartoonist, also known as a political cartoonist, is an artist who draws editorial cartoons that contain some level of political or social commentary. Their cartoons are used to convey and question an aspect of daily news or curren ...

, and

caricaturist A caricaturist is an artist who specializes in drawing caricatures. List of caricaturists * Abed Abdi (born 1942) * Al Hirschfeld (1903–2003) * Alex Gard (1900–1948) * Alexander Saroukhan (1898–1977) * Alfred Grévin (1827–1892) * ...

born in

Augsburg Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the '' ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

, who resided for most of his life in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; ...

. A dentist by profession, Volck is best known for his support of the

Confederacy Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by state ...

through his political cartoons, which has led him to be described as "the Northern art world's most famous Confederate sympathizer." Volck's support for the Confederacy extended beyond his cartoons, including smuggling items for the

Confederate army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighti ...

, and acting as a personal courier

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Jefferson Davis.

Early life

Volck was born April 14, 1828 in Augsburg, Bavaria, the third of thirteen children born to Andreas Volck, a vinegar maker. He received his education in art in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

Move to America

Upon arriving in America, Volck initially joined a brother-in-law in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, before following the California Gold Rush west in 1849. Volck had previously studied dentistry in Germany, and resumed that profession in Baltimore. While working under the supervision of

Chapin A. Harris Chapin Aaron Harris A.M., MD, D.D.S. (May 6, 1806 in Pompey, N.Y. – September 29, 1860 in Baltimore, Maryland) was an American physician and dentist and dentistry school founder. Education At the age of 17 Harris studied medicine in Madison, ...

, he received his dentistry degree from the

Baltimore College of Dental Surgery The University of Maryland School of Dentistry is the dental school of the University System of Maryland. It was founded as an independent institution, the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, in 1840 and was the birthplace of the Doctor of Denta ...

in 1852 with a thesis on the subject of "nerves." After graduating in Baltimore, he established a lifelong practice there. Volck was known for his work on porcelain restoration techniques. Volck was a member of many of elite Baltimore's

social club A social club may be a group of people or the place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation, or activity. Examples include: book discussion clubs, chess clubs, anime clubs, country clubs, charity work, crimin ...

s, including the Athenaeum Club, and James Innes Randolph's Whitebait Club. He was a founding member of Baltimore's Wednesday Club, an arts and culture society influential in the city during the latter 19th century. Volck was also a founding member of the Charcoal Club of Baltimore, a prominent artists' group.

Artistic output

Beyond sketches and cartoons, Volck's areas of artistic skill included landscape painting, silver smithing and sculpting. Volck's metalworks included copper and silver

brooch A brooch (, also ) is a decorative jewelry item designed to be attached to garments, often to fasten them together. It is usually made of metal, often silver or gold or some other material. Brooches are frequently decorated with enamel or with ...

es and

shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of ...

s, including one fashioned after the

nibelungenlied The ( gmh, Der Nibelunge liet or ), translated as ''The Song of the Nibelungs'', is an epic poem written around 1200 in Middle High German. Its anonymous poet was likely from the region of Passau. The is based on an oral tradition of German ...

. He also designed a giant brass growler for the use of the Charcoal Club, which was cast by famous Baltimore silversmith W.F. Jacobi and remains in the club's possession for use in ceremonies.

Death

Volck injured both knees in an accident, following which he retired from his dentistry practice, focusing his final years on landscape paintings based on sketches he had made of the

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

. He died at his home on Linden Avenue on March 26, 1912. After his death, an acquaintance wrote to ''The Baltimore Sun'' that Volck "deeply regretted" having caricatured Lincoln, "whom he had entirely misunderstood."

References

External links

Volck Caricatures
From the Collections at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

The Confederate War Etchings
at the New-York Historical Society *
Adalbert Volck Etchings from the Enoch Pratt Free Library
at

Digital Maryland Digital Maryland, formerly Maryland Digital Cultural Heritage (MDCH), is a collaborative, statewide digitization program. Headquartered at the Enoch Pratt Free Library/State Library Resource Center in Baltimore, the program partners with Maryland ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Volck, Adalbert J. 1828 births 1912 deaths Bavarian emigrants to the United States American artisans American caricaturists American cartoonists American dentists German caricaturists German dentists People of Maryland in the American Civil War German artisans 19th-century dentists