Miss Atkinson in Colors of Glenelg Yacht Club, from the Yacht Colors of the World series (N140) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco

Art Historical Context

In the late 19th century, American tobacco companies like W., Sons & Co. revolutionized with vibrant collectible cards inserted into cigarette packs. This charming 1890 commercial color lithograph, *Miss Atkinson in Colors of Glenelg Yacht Club*, is one such gem from the *Yacht Colors of the World* series (N140), promoting "Honest Long Cut Tobacco." Measuring just 4 by 2½ inches, it depicts a poised woman in the club's distinctive flag-inspired attire, blending portraiture with nautical pride amid the era's yachting craze among the elite. Chromolithography, the medium here, allowed for vivid, mass-produced color printing that mimicked fine art at low cost, making these ephemera accessible collectibles. Duke's series captured global yacht club burgees—triangular flags symbolizing identity and competition—reflecting America's growing maritime leisure culture and the Gilded Age's obsession with status symbols. Today, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, this tiny print offers a window into Victorian advertising ingenuity and women's subtle presence in male-dominated sports. It's a delightful reminder of how everyday promotions preserve slices of history.

About the Artist

W. Duke, Sons & Co. · 1870–1920

**W. Duke, Sons & Co.: Pioneers of Chromolithographic Trade Card Art** W. Duke, Sons & Co., an American tobacco manufacturer, emerged from the entrepreneurial vision of Washington Duke (1820–1905) and his sons in Durham, North Carolina. After the Civil War, Washington abandoned farming in 1874 to join his eldest son, Brodie L. Duke, in the burgeoning tobacco trade, establishing a factory that for...