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The caricature Uncle Sam embodies the government and spirit of the United States. Today’s Uncle Sam was developed over a century and a half by political and commercial artists. Although no one is sure if the character we know today as Uncle Sam was patterned after a real person, it’s believed that he was patterned after a business man named Samuel Wilson.
Samuel Wilson of Massachusetts (1766-1854), was a drummer boy first and then a soldier in the Revolutionary War. In 1789, he moved to Troy, New York, where he owned a prosperous meat packing business. Wilson was a friendly and highly respected businessman who was nicknamed Uncle Sam.
In the War of 1812, Wilson provided pork and beef to the Army troops camped on the outskirts of Troy. He shipped these rations in barrels labeled “US” (meaning for the Army and not for retail sale). The abbreviations “US” and “USA” were not yet in general use at that time; so when a Federal inspection crew visited Wilson’s plant on October 1, 1812, they asked a worker what “US” stood for. The worker didn’t know what “US” stood for so he jokingly said that it must mean his employer, “Uncle Sam.”
Soon everyone started using the nickname “Uncle Sam” for the Federal Government. The caricature of Uncle Sam first appeared as a portly man, in a black top hat and tails. Later, he was dressed more patriotically, in the colors of the Flag. Finally, he became tall, gaunt and bearded after
Thomas Nast
and other 19th century political cartoonists began to model him on Abraham Lincoln
.
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