Adalbert J. Volck (1828–1912) was a

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental doctor, dental physician, dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry, the branch of medicine focused on the teeth, gums, and mouth. The dentist's supporting team aids in provi ...

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 current ...

, and

caricaturist A caricaturist is an artist who specializes in drawing caricatures. List of caricaturists * Abed Abdi (born 1942) * Abril Lamarque (1904–1999) * Al Hirschfeld (1903–2003) * Alex Gard (1900–1948) * Alexander Saroukhan (1898–1977) * Alfre ...

born in

Augsburg Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

, who resided for most of his life in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

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

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

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 Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

items for the

Confederate army The Confederate States Army (CSA), 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), fi ...

, and acting as a personal courier for

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: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the only President of the Confederate States of America, president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the Unite ...

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 (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Move to America

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

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, before following the

California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...

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, he received his dentistry degree from the

Baltimore College of Dental Surgery The University of Maryland School of Dentistry (abbreviated UMSOD), 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 o ...

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 or social organization may be a group of people or the place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation or activity with in an organizational association known as a Club (organization), club. Exampl ...

s, including the Athenaeum Club, and

James Innes Randolph James Innes Randolph, Jr. (October 25, 1837 – April 29, 1887) was a Confederate States of America, Confederate army officer, lawyer, and poet. Early life and education Randolph was born in Winchester, Virginia and attended Hobart and Willi ...

'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 (, ) is a decorative jewellery 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 gem ...

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 like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...

s, including one fashioned after the

nibelungenlied The (, or ; or ), translated as ''The Song of the Nibelungs'', is an epic poetry, 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 Germanic hero ...

. 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 Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is census regions United States Census Bureau As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the mea ...

. 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 a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

The Confederate War Etchings
at the New-York Historical Society *
Adalbert Volck Etchings from the Enoch Pratt Free Library
at Digital Maryland {{DEFAULTSORT:Volck, Adalbert J. 1828 births 1912 deaths Bavarian emigrants to the United States 19th-century American artisans American caricaturists American landscape painters American editorial cartoonists 20th-century American dentists German caricaturists German landscape painters German editorial cartoonists 19th-century German dentists People of Maryland in the American Civil War 19th-century German artisans American political artists German political artists 19th-century American dentists