Objective To examine the U S homefront during

Objective: To examine the U. S. homefront during World War I. Do Now: Should the U. S. reinstitute a draft? Why, or why not?

World War I – The Homefront Selective Service Act (1917) – required all men from the age of 21 to 30 to register for the military draft · By 1918, approximately 4 million Americans joined the armed forces.

Organizing the War Effort Food: · Americans learned to conserve food for the soldiers. Examples: • “wheatless Monday’s” • “meatless Tuesday’s”

· In order to support the troops “victory gardens” were grown by people throughout the nation.

Labor: · The War Industries Board told factories what to produce and the War Labor Board settled labor disputes. From the biography of a 'Munitionette', Miss Joan Williams 'Women working in larger munitions factories were known as Canaries because they dealt with TNT which caused their skin to turn yellow. Around 400 women died from overexposure to TNT during World War One. Other hazards were more obvious and minor problems were common. '

· Women took over the jobs of men fighting in the war. Woman In a Factory During World War I

Public Support: · The government raised over $21 billion through the sale of Liberty Bonds.

Cartooning for Victory: World War I Instructions to Artists During World War I, the United States fought a war of ideas with unprecedented ingenuity and organization. President Woodrow Wilson established the Committee on Public Information (CPI) to manage news and solicit widespread support for the war at home and abroad. Under the energetic direction of Mississippi newspaper editor George Creel, the CPI churned out national propaganda through diverse media including films, cartoons, and speeches. The CPI’s home-front propaganda cartoons were no laughing matter. The Bureau of Cartoons, headed by George Hecht, exhorted cartoonists to use their popular medium to support the war effort.

How Your Liberty Bond Will Fight The cartoonist has here an opportunity to show graphically just what the bond quota of his local community will purchase. A $50 bond will buy: • 14 rifle grenades. • 160 first-aid packages to dress wounds. • Truck knives for an entire rifle company. A $100 bond will: • Clothe a soldier. • Buy 5 rifles. • Feed a soldier for 8 months. A $1, 000 bond will buy: • An X-ray apparatus outfit. • Pistols for an entire company.

$5, 000 worth of bonds will buy: • 1 Liberty truck. • 7 Lewis machine guns. $50, 000 worth of bonds will: • Maintain a submarine for over a year. • Construct a base hospital with 500 beds. $100, 000 Will buy 5 fighting airplanes. $1, 000 worth of bonds will maintain a battleship for a year. $1, 800, 000 worth of bonds will build one destroyer. $28, 000 worth of bonds will build one new battleship complete.

Tensions and Protests · African-Americans faced prejudice and racial violence as they left the South for the North. The states in blue had the ten largest net gains of African. Americans during the Great Migration, while the states in red had the ten largest net losses.

• German Americans faced discrimination and their loyalty to the U. S. was questioned. • Germans were referred to as Huns. • The frankfurter became the hot dog, hamburgers became Salisbury steaks • The teaching of the German language was banned in schools "Where he can be kept out of mischief? ” November 1917, Des Moines Register

· Many Progressives opposed the war. In response, the U. S. made it illegal to criticize the government or to interfere with the war. - Nearly 1, 600 people were arrested for breaking these laws. - Eugene Debs, Socialist candidate for President, was arrested for protesting the draft. Eugene V. Debs (1855 – 1926)

The Espionage Act of 1917 was passed shortly after the U. S. entered World War I. It made it a crime for a person to interfere with the operation or success of the armed forces of the United States or to promote the success of its enemies. It was punishable by a maximum $10, 000 fine (almost $170, 000 in today's dollars) and 20 years in prison. Debs in the Atlanta Penitentiary

Americans in France (1918) · The majority of American forces in France were led by General John J. Pershing.

Trench warfare; African-American soldiers fighting alongside their French allies

· An African-American regiment, known as the Harlem Hell Fighters, fought alongside French troops against the Germans. * The entire regiment was awarded the Croix de Guerre, a French medal of honor, for their bravery.

New York's famous 369 th regiment (Harlem Hell Fighters) arrive home from France

Honoring New York's famous 369 th regiment (Harlem Hell Fighters)

Battle of Belleau Wood – June, 1918 · This was the first battle involving U. S. troops. · The Germans were defeated after three weeks of battle. "American Marines in Belleau Wood” (1918) Georges Scott (1873 -1943) * The Allied defense of Paris was the turning point of the war.

Battle of the Argonne Forest – Sept. -Oct. , 1918 · The battle was fought in an attempt to push Germany further out of France.

· After forty-seven days and heavy casualties, the Germans retreated. American gunners battle through the Argonne Forest.

Peace at Last · At 11 a. m. on November 11, 1918, Germany agreed to an armistice, ending World War I.

* Approximately 13 million people died and 20 million were wounded in the war.

Entente Powers Military Deaths Total Deaths Military Wounded Australia[1] Belgium[2] Canada[3] France[4] 61, 928 42, 987 64, 944 1, 397, 800 61, 928 104, 987 66, 944 1, 697, 800 152, 171 44, 686 149, 732 4, 266, 000 India[6] Italy[7] Romania[13] 74, 187 651, 010 250, 000 74, 187 1, 240, 010 680, 000 69, 214 953, 886 120, 000 Russia[14] Serbia[15] United Kingdom[17] United States[18] Total (Entente Powers) 1, 811, 000 275, 000 885, 138 116, 708 3, 311, 000 725, 000 994, 138 117, 465 4, 950, 000 133, 148 1, 663, 435 205, 690 5, 696, 056 10, 353, 813 12, 809, 280

Central Powers Military Deaths Total Deaths Military Wounded Austria-Hungary[19] Bulgaria[20] 1, 100, 000 87, 500 1, 567, 000 187, 500 3, 620, 000 152, 390 Germany[21] Ottoman Empire[22] Total (Central Powers) 2, 036, 897 800, 000 2, 462, 897 5, 000 4, 247, 143 400, 000 4, 024, 397 9, 415, 397 8, 419, 533