1941 Uncle Sam
The “Uncle Sam & Uncle Sam's Home Defense” series is made up of two separate subsets. Both sets were issued by Gum, Inc. in 1941 prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor and the entrance of the United States into World War II. The first subset titled “Uncle Sam”, consists of 96 cards, sequentially numbered from 1 to 96. They depict various scenes from the four branches of United States military; Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. The cards themselves are arranged in four subsets: (1) Uncle Sam — Soldier, (2) Uncle Sam — Sailor, (3) Uncle Sam — Airman, and (4) Uncle Sam — Marine. The set itself is rather benign in content and subject compared to its contemporaries such as the Horrors of War and The Nightmare of Warfare. Both of these sets depicted the horrible events and more graphic details of what was happening in the world at that time. On the other hand, the Uncle Sam and Uncle Sam's Home Defense series were more directed towards the United States preparedness for hostilities, and concentrated on the various training aspects of the U.S. Armed Forces and Civilian population. The color artwork in both sets is pleasing to eye, with good colorization. The “Uncle Sam” set has the American Card Catalog reference number R157.
The 48 card “Uncle Sam's Home Defense” subset, followed the “Uncle Sam” set in 1941. The set was sequentially numbered from 97 to 144. This particular subset is devoted to the civilian activities in preparation for warfare. The series is also very pleasing to the eye, and is interesting from the historical perspective of what United States citizens were doing in preparation for hostilities in 1941. The “Uncle Sam's Home Defense” subset has an American Card Catalog number of “R158”. This subset is more difficult to obtain since the production of the cards came under the jurisdiction of wartime restrictions on resources. However reprint cards of the series are available.
The 48 card “Uncle Sam's Home Defense” subset, followed the “Uncle Sam” set in 1941. The set was sequentially numbered from 97 to 144. This particular subset is devoted to the civilian activities in preparation for warfare. The series is also very pleasing to the eye, and is interesting from the historical perspective of what United States citizens were doing in preparation for hostilities in 1941. The “Uncle Sam's Home Defense” subset has an American Card Catalog number of “R158”. This subset is more difficult to obtain since the production of the cards came under the jurisdiction of wartime restrictions on resources. However reprint cards of the series are available.
- Series Title: Uncle Sam
- Country of Origin: United States of America
- Type of Card: Gum
- ACC No.: R157
- Manufactured by: Gum, Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Packaged with: Uncle Sam Chewing Gum
- Number of Cards: 96
- Numbering: 1 to 96
- Card Dimensions: 1½ × 3⅛ inches
- Album: None known
- Circa: 1941