Frank Beard (February 6, 1842 - September 28, 1905) was an American artist, illustrator and draughtsman. Born in Cinncinnati, Ohio, he began drawing at an early age and was submitting material for publication as young as 12. In the Civil War, Leslie's and Harper's commissioned the 18 -year-old Beard to accompany the Army of the Potomac as a correspondent. After the war he originated the 'chalk talk' - a popular lecture accompanied with rapid illustration - primarily in aid of his methodist wife's temperance lectures. He was for three years the chair for aesthetics and painting at Syracuse University; at the end of this tenure, he became one of the editors for The Judge magazine. Following the 1884 election of Grover Cleveland, he shifted from political humor to education, Sunday school work, and Chautaquas. Beginning in about 1885 he illustrated The Ram's Horn, a Chicago religious weekly; by 1890 he was entirely engaged with work for that magazine.