Everything about Samuel Wilson totally explained
Samuel Wilson (
September 13,
1766 -
July 31,
1854) was a meat-packer in
Troy, New York whose name is purportedly the source of the personification of the
United States known as "
Uncle Sam."
Samuel was born in historic
Arlington (known as Menotomy at the time),
Massachusetts, to parents originally from
Greenock,
Scotland. The
Uncle Sam Memorial Statue marks his birthplace. As a boy, he moved with his family to
Mason, New Hampshire. In
1789, Samuel and his brother Ebeneezer moved to Troy, where they went into business. In
1797, Samuel married Betsey Mann of Mason and brought her back to Troy with him. They had four children and lived in a house on Ferry Street. Samuel Wilson died in
1854 and is buried in
Oakwood Cemetery in Troy.
At the time of the
War of 1812, Samuel Wilson was a prosperous middle-aged meat-packer in Troy. He obtained a contract to supply beef to the Army in its campaign further north, which he shipped in barrels. The barrels, being government property, were branded with the initials "U.S.", and the
teamsters and soldiers would joke that the initials referred to their "Uncle Sam." Over time, it's believed, anything marked with the same initials (as much Army property was) also became linked with his name.
Image:Uncle Sam Memorial Statue, Arlington, MA - general view.jpg|Uncle Sam Memorial Statue, Arlington, Massachusetts
Image:Uncle Sam Memorial Statue, Arlington, MA - Uncle Sam.jpg|Uncle Sam detail
Image:Uncle Sam Memorial Statue, Arlington, MA - Samuel Wilson.jpg|Samuel Wilson detail
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