Thomas Nast

Thomas Nast was an American cartoonist working in the second half of the 19th century. His cartoons were instrumental in toppling the corrupt politician William Magear Tweed (Boss Tweed) of Tammany Hall in the New York City. Among his other notable contributions were the creation of our modern versions of Santa Claus and Uncle Sam, and the invention of the iconic animal symbols used by the two major American political parties, the Republican elephant and the Democratic donkey.