When and why did the term "Uncle Sam" start being used as a reference to the United States government?

infiniti

The early references to Uncle Sam appeared in "peace" newspapers, ones opposed to the War of 1812--and it was used as a put down. This suggests Uncle Sam was dreamed up by critics of the government who simply wanted to personify the object of their scorn. Mar 06 05, 4:42 AM

tankz

I read somewhere that Uncle Sam was a real person named Samuel Wilson born in Arlington, Massachusetts in 1766. I have this in my English textbook, but I'm highly speculative of the accuracy of this information. This is what it says: "Uncle Sam was Samuel Wilson, born in Arlington, Massachusetts in 1766. At the age of eight, he was a drummer boy in the American Revolution. Later in life he moved to New York and opened a meat-packing company. He was a good and caring employer and became affectionately known as Uncle Sam. Sam Wilson sold meat to the army, and he wrote the letters US on the crates. This meant 'United States', but this abbreciation was not yet common. One day a company worker was asked what the letters US stood for. He wasn't sure, and wrongly said that perhaps the letters stood for his mployer, Uncle Sam. Nevertheless, the mistake continued. Soon soldiers started referring to all military goods as coming from Uncle Sam. They even saw themselves as Uncle Sam's men." Like I said, I seriously doubt the accuracy of this story, but it's nicely said anyway. Mar 06 05, 7:03 AM

infiniti

I think that's the nice story, but as you say Tankz, probably not quite true. Try this site: http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_003.html Mar 06 05, 8:23 AM

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How did the US government, get the nickname 'Uncle Sam'? When did the United States federal government start printing paper money? When did bar codes first start being used and what was the first product to use one? Who was said to be the model for the Uncle Sam poster?

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