The Spirit of 76: a superhero that didn't need to be

Reading the public domain comics online, I have discovered many heroes that I had never even heard of before. A lot of them still had a long, illustrious history in print. Many episodes chronicle their deeds. I am also fascinated at the back up features. I guess I always have been. I like cool characters before they become their own industry. Like Wolverine, who was a super-cool character that was minor, really, in the pages of the X-Men until word of mouth demanded he get his own series. Then all of a sudden there was too much Wolverine.

Here's a case of a superhero that I don't understand at all. The Spirit of '76.

A back up feature in Green Hornet for 30 issues and Pocket Comics #1-4, he had no superpowers but his cloak was bulletproof. His family all fought through the wars of America's history. He really feels like nothing but a Captain America knockoff, except the outfit of Spirit of '76 was Revolutionary War garb.

Yet all the adventures of this guy that I have read have indicated no need for ever jumping into costume in the first place.

He's already a soldier in World War II. Most of the adventures I've seen even have him and his sidekick on a real mission and all by themselves.

If it were Captain America, Steve Rogers wasn't supposed to be on the missions, or he needed to inspire the troops. The Spirit of '76 was always alone and it was absolutely nothing that his soldier secret identity of Gary Blakely could not have done on his own as a regular soldier. His costume changes seemed to come out of nowhere just so he could punch a guy.