The Search for Uncle Sam

The whole world knows what Uncle Sam stands for, but until recent years less was known about his lineage than about the earlier symbols of America.

First had come Pocahontas, the Indian girl decorating the old maps. According to legend, she had saved the life of Captain John Smith in Virginia, a deed recorded by the cartographers. As the colonies grew and flourished, her pigmentation faded and she became Columbia, clad in classic white robes like a Greek matron. Indeed, many had favoured calling the new land Columbia in tribute to Christopher Columbus, the discoverer.