- Columbia was made into zinc engravings of many different sizes, from ½” up to 6”. Later, when the Helaine Victoria Press Women’s History Shop opened in Bloomington, the wonderful sign artist painted her two feet tall for the sign. Columbia, who represents an early version of Liberty, was the precursor to Uncle Sam. On a visit to the Smithsonian Institution, Jocelyn Cohen and Nancy Poore discovered that she was among the U.S.’s earliest national symbols. The familiar version of Uncle Sam, with stripes and topper, didn’t come into general use until the 1870s.
|