J. M. Flagg's 1917 poster, based on the original British Lord Kitchener poster of three years earlier, was used to recruit soldiers for both World War I and World War II. Flagg used a modified version of his own face for Uncle Sam, and veteran Walter Botts provided the pose.^[1]

Uncle Sam is the national personification of the United States and sometimes more specifically of the American government, with the first usage of the term dating from the War of 1812 and the first illustration dating from 1852. He is depicted as a serious elderly white man with white hair and a goatee beard, and dressed in clothing that recalls the design elements of flag of the United States—for example, typically a top hat with red and white stripes and white stars on a blue band, and red and white striped trousers.

[edit] Introduction

The 87th United States Congress adopted the following resolution on September 15, 1961: "Resolved by the Senate and the House of Representatives that the Congress salutes Uncle Sam Wilson of Troy, New York, as the progenitor of America's National symbol of Uncle Sam." Monuments mark his birthplace in Arlington, Massachusetts, and site of burial in Oakwood Cemetery, Troy, New York. Another sign marks "The boyhood home of Sam" outside his second home in Mason, NH. The first use of the term in literature is seen in an 1816 allegorical book, The Adventures of Uncle Sam in Search After His Lost Honor by Frederick Augustus Fidfaddy, Esq., also in reference to the aforementioned Samuel Wilson.

Earlier representative figures of the United States included such beings as "Brother Jonathan," used by Punch magazine. These were overtaken by Uncle Sam somewhere around the time of the Civil War. The female personification "Columbia" has seldom been seen since the 1920s. The well-known "recruitment" image of Uncle Sam was created by James Montgomery Flagg, an illustrator and portrait artist best known for commercial art. The image of Uncle Sam was shown publicly for the first time, according to some, in a picture by Flagg on the cover of the magazine Leslie's Weekly, on July 6, 1916, with the caption "What Are You Doing for Preparedness?" ^[1][2] More than four million copies of this image were printed between 1917 and 1918. The image also was used extensively during World War II.

[edit] Origin

In this political cartoon from 1860, an early rendering of Uncle Sam looks on approvingly as Stephen A. Douglas receives a spanking from Columbia.

The American icon Uncle Sam was in fact based on a real man, albeit a beardless one.

A businessman from Troy, New York, Samuel Wilson, provided the army with beef and pork in barrels during the War of 1812. The barrels were prominently labeled "U.S." for the United States, but it was jokingly said that the letters stood for "Uncle Sam." Soon, Uncle Sam was used as shorthand for the federal government.

The man himself looked nothing like the gaunt, steely-eyed patrician of popular lore. The Abe Lincoln look, along with the star-spangled outfit, was a product of political cartoonist Thomas Nast, who was one of the most popular artists of the 1800s. (Nast was also responsible for the popular images of Santa Claus, the Republican Elephant, and the Democratic Donkey.) ^[3]

Uncle Sam became a useful icon in cartoons, much like the John Bull character who represented the United Kingdom. John Bull and Uncle Sam have squared off in hundreds of political cartoons throughout the years.

The most famous image of the Uncle Sam persona was a World War I recruiting image that depicted a stern Sam pointing his finger at the viewer and declaring, "I want you". It was painted by artist James Montgomery Flagg in 1916, just prior to US involvement in World War I.

It has been argued by historian Glen Clever that the image of Uncle Sam was influenced by or even based on the character Sam Slick, created by Canadian satirist Thomas Chandler Haliburton.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] See also

• John Bull
• Lord Kitchener Wants You
• Sam (Olympic mascot)
• Uncle Sam Memorial Statue (Arlington, Massachusetts)
• Uncle Sam, DC Comics character

[edit] Bibliography

• Fenster, Bob. They Did What!?, Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0-7407-3793-7

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Uncle Sam

• "The Most Famous Poster," U.S. Library of Congress
• Historical Uncle Sam Pictures
• James Montgomery Flagg's 1917 "I Want You" Poster and other works (Internet Archive copy from 2004 October 28)
• What's the origin of Uncle Sam? The Straight Dope
• "USA Thinking Team" - new images of a modern Uncle Sam promoting peace. Messages from his helpmate, Aunt Sarah.