Recruiting Poster for Black Soldiers During the Civil War

After the Emancipation Proclamation was announced, black recruitment of soldiers became a priority and was pursued in earnest. In May 1863 the Government established the Bureau of Colored Troops to manage black soldiers.. Frederick Douglass encouraged black men to become soldiers to ensure eventual full citizenship stating that “Once let the black man get upon his person the brass letter, U.S., let him get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on earth that can deny that he has earned the right to citizenship.”

Tomorrow, Black Soldiers at War   Rita Bay

This Week in History: Uncle Sam

This week in 1813 the United States government adopted the nickname “Uncle Sam.” Samuel Wilson, a meat packer in Troy, NY stamped barrels of supplies sent to soldiers in the War of 1812 “US.” The soldiers began calling the supplies “Uncle Sam’s.” In 1860 American cartoonist Thomas Nast popularized the white-bearded, stars-and-stripes clad figure we know today. During World War I, James Montgomery Flagg used his own likeness to create Uncle Sam, adding age and the white goatee to create the iconic recruitment poster. The poster was reissued in World War II.

Tomorrow, Bruiser’s Recovery