Opper Project

Opper Project

The Opper Project, named after Ohioan Frederick Burr Opper, the first great American-born cartoonist, is an on-line collection of historic editorial cartoons. Covering more than one hundred years of American history, the cartoons are organized topically with associated lesson plans.

The cartoons are from the collection of The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum at Ohio State University. Most are American, but you will also find the views of some international cartoonists on the America of their day. There are some famous cartoons here, but most of the images are not the ones typically reproduced in text books and instructional materials.

All the cartoons are evocative and teachable, however. To help you get started, they come with teacher-created lesson plans tied to the Ohio Academic Content Standards.


The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists Logo
Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum at The Ohio State University
History Teaching Institute at The Ohio State University
Opper Project