Rep. Dan Crenshaw shared a series of posts on July 28, 2025, providing his followers with an account of the origins and evolution of the Uncle Sam figure in American history.
In one tweet, Crenshaw stated, “It’s a legend, but during the War of 1812, a meatpacker named Samuel Wilson in Troy, NY packed barrels of beef for U.S. Army supplies. Each barrel was stamped “U.S.” Soldiers joked it stood for “Uncle Sam”—a nod to Wilson’s nickname.” (July 28, 2025).
He followed this with another post summarizing his intention: “In case you were wondering where Uncle Sam came from, here’s a quick breakdown of his origin story:” (July 28, 2025).
Crenshaw also addressed how the modern image of Uncle Sam was shaped during World War I: “Fast-forward to WWI: artist James Montgomery Flagg needed a recruitment poster and dug into the legend. He sketched a stern, pointing figure and labeled it “I Want You”—the common image we know today.” (July 28, 2025).
The character known as “Uncle Sam” has long served as a symbol for the United States government and is widely recognized from recruitment posters dating back to World War I. The name reportedly originated from Samuel Wilson’s role as a supplier during the War of 1812; soldiers’ jokes about barrels marked “U.S.” contributed to this enduring national personification.
Dan Crenshaw currently serves as U.S. Representative and has consistently secured reelection since first winning office in 2018. In recent years he won general elections against Peter Filler in 2024 by receiving approximately two-thirds of the vote ([source](https://ballotpedia.org/Dan_Crenshaw)), Robin Fulford in 2022 with similar margins ([source](https://ballotpedia.org/Dan_Crenshaw)), Sima Ladjevardian in 2020 ([source](https://ballotpedia.org/Dan_Crenshaw)), and Todd Litton in 2018 ([source](https://ballotpedia.org/Dan_Crenshaw)).
