![Did You Know ‘Uncle Sam’ Is From Troy NY](http://townsquare.media/site/42/files/2017/05/GettyImages-577071666.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Did You Know ‘Uncle Sam’ Is From Troy NY
On September 7, 1813, the United States was nicknamed 'Uncle Sam' and is connected to a meat packer from Troy named Samual Wilson.
During the War of 1812, Samual Wilson supplied barrels of beef to the Army, stamped 'U.S.' for the United States. Soldiers started calling the food 'Uncle Sams,' a newspaper picked up the story, and 'Uncle Sam' was soon the nickname for the US Federal Government.
Political cartoonist Thomas Nast, who is credited with creating the modern image of Santa Claus, the donkey for the Democratic Party and the elephant as a symbol for the Republicans, is said to be the one who gave 'Sam' the white beard and the stars and stripes suit that we still know today.
Artist James Montgomery Flagg is credited for Uncle Sam's most famous image of Uncle Sam pointing straight forward with the caption “I Want You For The U.S. Army.”
History.com says in September 1961, the U.S. Congress recognized Samuel Wilson as “the progenitor of America’s national symbol of Uncle Sam.” Wilson died at age 88 in 1854 and was buried next to his wife Betsey Mann in the Oakwood Cemetery in Troy, New York, the town that calls itself “The Home of Uncle Sam.”
Samual Wilson and his wife had a very simple tombstone until his granddaughter erected a larger stone and brass plaque 77 years after he died. Local Boy Scouts take care of the flag pole that's nearby.
[Information from History.com and Roadside America]
LOOK: 100 years of American military history
LOOK: See the iconic cars that debuted the year you were born
10 Old Fisher Price Toys That Are a Blast From The Past
More From 96.1 The Eagle
![Benefits Active Military and Veterans Qualify For In New York](http://townsquare.media/site/498/files/2022/06/attachment-New-York-military-veterans.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![LISTEN: Owego Army Specialist Requests Message Be Delivered to His Loved Ones](http://townsquare.media/site/498/files/2022/03/attachment-Owego-Soldier.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![What Was It Like on the Mayflower? Step Aboard the Mayflower II To Get an Idea [GALLERY]](http://townsquare.media/site/498/files/2021/11/attachment-20210715_125020.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Department of Defense Warns of Army Draft Scam](http://townsquare.media/site/498/files/2020/01/30116pre_77be97c8c2c6905.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Do You Know Grandma Moses Is From The Capital District?](http://townsquare.media/site/42/files/2017/09/GettyImages-537166793-11.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![‘Aerial America’ Features Schuyler Family Farmhouse](http://townsquare.media/site/42/files/2016/10/Capture10.png?w=980&q=75)
![American History Versus Disney History](http://townsquare.media/site/42/files/2015/07/GettyImages-509965371.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Vladimir Putin Cautions The U.S. Against Strikes In Syria](http://townsquare.media/site/42/files/2013/09/149683694.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Is the Afghan War Worth the Costs? – Survey of the Day](http://townsquare.media/site/42/files/2012/03/Afghan-war.jpg?w=980&q=75)