(1860) Bronze Medal DeWitt WHH-E, W.H. Harrison

Coin Details

Description

This 1860 bronze medal, cataloged as DeWitt WHH-E, depicts William Henry Harrison and was produced as a restrike or commemorative reissue during the 1860 campaign season. Harrison (1773-1841) had won the presidency in the famous 1840 "Log Cabin and Hard Cider" campaign but died just thirty-one days after his inauguration. The "WHH-E" designation in the DeWitt catalog identifies this as the bronze striking of a Harrison medal reissued circa 1860, when political nostalgia for the Whig hero remained strong among the new Republican constituency that had absorbed many former Whigs. The obverse features Harrison's portrait, while the reverse carries imagery associated with his military career or the 1840 campaign themes. Bronze Harrison medals from the 1860 period serve as links between the Whig political tradition and the emerging Republican coalition that would elect Abraham Lincoln, drawing on the same populist campaigning style that Harrison had pioneered twenty years earlier with mass rallies, campaign songs, and widespread distribution of tokens and medals.

Rarity Notes

DeWitt WHH-E. Bronze composition. Restrike or commemorative reissue circa 1860. Harrison campaign material from both 1840 and later reissues is actively collected in political Americana.

Cross References

PCGS #967486; DeWitt WHH-E; William Henry Harrison; 9th President