Uncle Sam
National personification of the United States government.
Last updated
via Wikipedia: Uncle Sam · see source
Widespread recognition of the character came from his use in military recruitment materials, especially after James Montgomery Flagg created a famous World War I poster in 1917.[1]
Quick Facts
- First known reference
- 1810
- Field
- National personification
- Nationality
- United States
- Known for
- Symbol of the U.S. government; iconic 'I Want You' recruiting poster
- Associated legend
- Samuel Wilson (meatpacker, War of 1812)
- Earliest literary appearance
- 1816 allegorical book The Adventures of Uncle Sam, in Search After His Lost Hono
- First literary appearance
- 1816 (The Adventures of Uncle Sam, in Search After His Lost Honor)
- Standardized appearance
- 1917 (James Montgomery Flagg poster)
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
A March 24, 1810, journal entry by Navy midshipman Isaac Mayo uses "uncle Sam" as a stand-in for the U.S. government.[2] An 1810 edition of Niles' Weekly Register has a footnote defining Uncle Sam as "a cant term in the army for the United States".[3] A popular legend is that the name derived from Samuel Wilson, a meatpacker who supplied rations for American soldiers during the War of 1812.[4] Wilson's packages were labeled "E.A.—U.S.," and a co-worker jokingly said the "U.S." stood for "Uncle Sam" referring to Wilson.[4]
By the 1850s, the names Brother Jonathan and Uncle Sam were being used nearly interchangeably.[5] The well-known recruitment image of Uncle Sam was first created by James Montgomery Flagg during World War I.[6] The 1816 book The Adventures of Uncle Sam, in Search After His Lost Honor contains the first literary reference to Uncle Sam.[7] Because the Samuel Wilson story was not recorded in print until 1842, its truthfulness has been questioned.[8]
A reference to Uncle Sam as a metaphor from 1810 is the earliest known, and this date is earlier than when Wilson had his government contract.[8]
What the cited sources add
The "Uncle Sam: We Want You" account states that soldiers said provisions came from "Uncle Sam" because the "U.S." abbreviation was not yet a popular abbreviation.[9] The same account notes that the most famous depiction comes from the 1917 WWI poster, which rolled off the printing presses over four million times from 1917 through 1918.[9] The "Who Created Uncle Sam?" article states that Leslie's Weekly first published Flagg's illustration as the cover of the July 6, 1916, issue with the title "What Are You Doing for Preparedness?".[10] That article also notes that in 1961, Congress passed a resolution that officially recognized meat packer Samuel Wilson as Uncle Sam's namesake.[10]
The Stanley Meltzoff Archives state that his 1976 artwork for the Bell System telephone directory cover was inspired by a piece known as the Gossips by Norman Rockwell.[11]
References
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Uncle Sam", Marshall Cavendish 2006, 40 pages, 2006, p. 9; "What's the deal with Uncle Sam?" (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Zimmer, Ben, "New Light on "Uncle Sam" referencing work at USS Constitution Museum in Charlestown, Mass", July 4, 2013. facts only, no text reused. vocabulary.com
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Niles' Weekly Register", 1815, p. 187 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Wyandott Herald, Kansas City, August 17, 1882, p. 2 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: An appearance echoed in Harper's Weekly, June 3, 1865 "Checkmate" political cartoon (Morgan, Winifred (1988) An American icon: Brother Jonathan and American ide; On page 32 of the January 11, 1862, edition Harper's Weekly. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Uncle Sam: We Want You" (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Schauffler, "Flag day; its history", New York : Moffat, Yard and Co, 1912, p. 145; pp. 40–41 of Albert Matthews, "Uncle Sam". Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society, v.19, 1908. pp. 21–65. Google Books (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Uncle Sam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Matthews, Albert, "Uncle Sam", Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society, Volume 19, 1908; Zimmer, Ben, "New Light on "Uncle Sam" referencing work at USS Constitution Museum in Charlestown, Mass", July 4, 2013 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Uncle Sam: We Want You". facts only, no text reused. theworldwar.org
- "Who Created Uncle Sam?", Life's Little Mysteries. facts only, no text reused. livescience.com
- "Stanley Meltzoff Archives: The 1976 Bell System Telephone Book Cover" JKL Museum of Telephony (December 19, 2015); retrieved March 16, 2021. facts only, no text reused. jklmuseum.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Uncle Sam (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Mythological & Legendary Figures
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Uncle Sam (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced