Presidents Buchanan and Lincoln Entering the Senate Chamber Before the Inauguration

Presidents Buchanan and Lincoln Entering the Senate Chamber Before the Inauguration, created by Winslow Homer (American, 1836-1910) and published in Harper’s Weekly in 1861, captures a crucial moment of political transition in the United States. This historical depiction, rendered as a wood engraving on paper, visualizes the tense final public interaction between the outgoing President James Buchanan and the incoming President Abraham Lincoln, just preceding Lincoln’s inauguration on the cusp of the Civil War.

Homer, working early in his career as a staff illustrator for Harper’s Weekly, documented the atmosphere of anxiety and anticipation surrounding the event. Wood engraving was the standard method for producing fast, high-circulation imagery during this era, enabling publications to disseminate visual reportage of immediate news, such as this monumental political assembly. The detail evident in the print, particularly the depiction of the packed Senate Chamber filled with dignitaries and spectators, demonstrates Homer’s developing skill in reportorial illustration and handling complex indoor gatherings.

This print serves as a vital document of the uneasy transfer of power during a period of extreme national division. As a significant piece of visual history documenting the foundations of the modern United States, the work is intensely studied today. The original impression is classified as a print within the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, and high-resolution reproductions of this historical image are often available for study and reference through the public domain.