What is the origin of Uncle Sam, the cartoon character symbolizing the U.S.? Any relation to Sam Hill, as in what the S.H.? –Anonymous, Denver
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A widely held belief, one that can be found in supposedly reliable reference books, is that the original Uncle Sam was one Sam Wilson, a meat packer in Troy, New York, who supplied rations to the U.S. military during the War of 1812. Wilson was a subcontractor to one Elbert Anderson, and the letters “E.A.–U.S.” were stamped on all the pair’s army-bound grub. On being asked what the letters stood for (the abbreviation U.S. supposedly was unfamiliar at the time), one of Sam’s workers joshed that it stood for “Elbert Anderson and Uncle Sam,” meaning the jovial Wilson himself. The joke was quickly picked up by Wilson’s other employees. Many of these men later served in the army during the war, and the story spread from there. This tale appears to have first found its way into print in 1842.
But there are reasons to doubt. For one thing, the Uncle Sam=Sam Wilson story didn’t see print until 30 years after the event, which seems suspiciously tardy. Second, the notion that someone in 1812 would have to ask what “U.S.” stood for is pretty hard to swallow–the available evidence shows that the initials were then in common use.
