An etymologist -- and former NYC parking violations judge, and RPI alum, and current Austin, Texas resident -- apparently has made it one of his etymological missions to discredit the claim that Troy's Sam Wilson was the origin of "Uncle Sam." [TU]
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Comments
The RPI degrees in Economics and Management "obviously" make him an expert on the topic. The J.D. is useless, I speak from personal experience.
... said colleen on Jun 10, 2013 at 12:17 PM | link
RPI grad? Sounds more like a personal vendetta against the city of his alma mater. Why you pick on Troy??
... said -R. on Jun 10, 2013 at 12:53 PM | link
I agree wholeheartedly with what Don Rittner said in the article -- if Popik was able to trace the first printed "Uncle Sam" reference to Bennington, that only strengthens the case. Troy and Bennington (and the Berkshires to the south) were very tightly tied in commerce back then.
Like most things along these lines, it was probably a convergence of memes that suddenly connected. Similar to the debates on the origins of "okay," it was probably "all of the above," including Martin Van Buren, that brought the well-known phrase into use, rather than a singular reference.
... said Carl on Jun 10, 2013 at 2:09 PM | link