At the time, in 1887, the lowly cabin was meant to evoke thoughts of an all-American hero, Abraham Lincoln, and thus increase sales.
Grocer P. J. Towle, creator of the syrup, a blend of sugar cane with Vermont and Canadian maple sugars, had rejected the idea of naming his creation Abraham Lincoln syrup.
But the log cabin idea worked, and in fact determined the shape for the syrup’s tin container until World War II, when tin was needed for the war effort.