What Is Today? Uncle Sam Day

Wondering what holiday is today or why today is so special? You’re lucky, then! In this section, we’ve compiled the most fun, memorable, and international days of the year to tell you more about them as life is definitely worth celebrating. We strive to commemorate achievements, events, holidays, and historical figures that once impacted the world in a variety of ways, so be quick to get your daily dose of facts and knowledge!

Who is Uncle Sam, and where did this expression come from?

207 years ago, on September 7, 1813, the expression Uncle Sam was first mentioned in the American press, which has become a designation of the personified image of the United States and its government.

It is believed that the expression Uncle Sam is playful decoding, which means that Uncle SАm is a way to say USА. But in fact, the phrase came into use in 1812 as a derivative of the name of the butcher. Samuel (Sam) Wilson supplied meat to the U.S. Army in boxes labeled U. S., which stood for the country's abbreviated name. These letters coincided with Wilson's initials, so the soldiers jokingly began to say that the meat came to them from Uncle Sam.

This joke gained serious popularity, and on September 15, 1961, the U.S. Congress recognized Sam Wilson as "the progenitor of America's national symbol of Uncle Sam." The most famous image of Uncle Sam, in which he points his finger at the viewer in a top hat and blue jacket, was created by artist James Flagg. During World War I, this image was featured on a poster calling for volunteers to join the U.S. Army with the words "I want you for U.S .Army."