Samuel “Uncle Sam” Wilson (1766)
Wilson was an American Revolutionary War veteran who owned a meatpacking plant in Troy, New York. He provided beef to the army during the War of 1812 in barrels stamped “US,” indicating that they were US property. According to some sources, the soldiers began joking that the initials stood for “Uncle Sam,” referring to Wilson, unwittingly inventing the character that would soon come into widespread use as a symbol of the US government. What resolution regarding Wilson did Congress pass in 1961? More…
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