1. Essential Question:
What was the role of the U.S. during World War I?
Warm-Up Question:
Read “Why did the U.S. Enter WWI” on the back of #2 notes
Rank order the items in terms of which events MOST brought the USA into war to LEAST

2. Total War
Combatants in World War I quickly began to use total war tactics
Governments committed all their nation’s resources & took over industry to win the war
Soldiers were drafted, the media was censored, propaganda was created to support the war
The enemy became the other nation, not just its soldiers

3. Total War
New weapons were introduced, such as machine guns, tanks, airplanes, flame throwers, poison gas, blimps, heavy artillery, & submarines
To protect soldiers from enemy fire, both the Allies & Central Powers built trenches
But, trench warfare made it difficult for either side to gain an advantage

4. German u-boats patrolled the Atlantic Ocean
When the U.S. declared war in 1917, World War I had been going on for 3 years
The British, French, & Germans had fought to a bloody stalemate on the Western Front
Russia was so devastated that soldiers were sent to fight on the Eastern Front without weapons while civilians starved at home
German u-boats patrolled the Atlantic Ocean

5. When the U.S. declared war in 1917, World War I had been going on for 3 years
In Nov 1917, Vladimir Lenin & the Bolsheviks successfully overthrew the Russian gov’t & established the Soviet Union, the 1st communist nation

6. America Enters the War
By 1917, the USA entered WWI as an Allied Power because:
German unrestricted submarine warfare violated U.S. free trade
Germany’s Zimmerman Telegram offered to return the Mexican Cession if Mexico invaded the USA
President Wilson hoped to stop the Central Powers & make the world “safe for democracy”
The USA declared war in April 1917

7. American Entry into World War I
After America’s declaration of war in 1917, America had to mobilize before it could fight in Europe
The army had only 200,000 soldiers & needed armaments
Wilson & Congress created 5,000 new bureaucratic agencies to manage & win the war

8. Developing a Bureaucratic Plan of Attack
In groups, help Wilson mobilize for war by addressing each of the following problems:
The army has only 200,000 soldiers
For 3 years, Wilson has stated that the USA will stay neutral in WWI. Now the USA has declared war. How do we keep morale high in support of this conflict?
How do we feed soldiers & civilians?
How do we get enough fuel for the military, factories, & civilians?
How do we make enough weapons?

9. Mobilization: The Military
To mobilize the military, President Wilson & Congress created:
The American Expeditionary Force led by John Pershing; The AEF was an “American” military independent of the Allied armies fighting in Europe 15

10. Mobilization: The Military
To mobilize the military, President Wilson & Congress created:
The Selective Service Act to draft men between the ages of 18 & 45 into the army
2.8 million were drafted to fight
Black soldiers were placed into segregated units 15

11. African-American Soldiers
“True Sons of Freedom”
“Colored Man is No Slacker”

12. Mobilization: The Military
To mobilize the military, President Wilson & Congress created:
War Industries Board oversaw the production of military supplies; Encouraged mass-production & set production quotas
Food Administration created food rations & encouraged Americans to grow “victory gardens”
Fuel Administration rationed coal, oil & encouraged “lightless nights” 15

13. War Industries Board

14. U.S. Food Administration

15. U.S. Fuel Administration

16. Mobilization: The Military
To mobilize the military, President Wilson & Congress created:
Committee on Public Information to create propaganda in support of the American war effort
The CPI created posters, movies, speeches & censored the press
The CPI helped encourage bond drives to raise money for the war
Anti-German sentiment in the CPI: Bach, Beethoven, & Brahms were not played in symphonies; Sauerkraut was renamed “Liberty Cabbage” & pretzels were no longer served in bars; Movie titles included: The Prussian Cur & The Kaiser, the Beast of Berlin 15

17. CPI Propaganda: Bond Drives

18. CPI Propaganda: Recruitment Posters

19. With the military & economy mobilized for war, the 1st U. S
With the military & economy mobilized for war, the 1st U.S. troops began fighting in 1918
To combat German u-boats, the USA used a convoy system to deliver soldiers & supplies to Europe
via convoy in June 1917 but did not see action until early 1918

20. The U.S. on the Western Front, 1918
U.S. soldiers saw their 1st action in May 1918 outside Paris, helped resist a German offensive, & participated in a counter-attack into Germany

21. The End of World War I
The arrival of fresh American soldiers & war supplies helped the Allies at a crucial time:
By October 1918, the German gov’t knew the war was over
The Ottomans, Austria-Hungary, & Bulgaria had surrendered
Nov 11, 1918 Germany signed an armistice with the Allies & World War I came to an end

22. The Impact of WWI on the USA
After 3 years of neutrality, the USA reluctantly entered WWI & played only a supportive role in the fighting
The American effort was far less than that of other Allied nations
America fought for only 8 months (not 4 years), had 7% casualties (not 52% like most Allied Powers)
But, the American commitment to “total war” had a huge impact on the U.S. home front

24. Essential Question:
How was America transformed at home during World War I?
Warm-Up Question:
What role did the USA play in fighting World War I?
Review the measures taken to mobilize America for war (in your #3 notes: II, B, 3 a-f). Which steps in mobilization were most important? Why?

25. The Home Front During World War I
World War I had a huge impact on the United States; In groups examine how the war impacted Americans at home
Examine the fact sheets at each learning station & take notes on the chart provided in your notes
After examining the evidence at each station, create a 1 sentence overview that summarizes how America was changed by World War I

26. Use this slide to debrief student understanding of the placard activity

27. Teachers: The following slides are the student placards

28. Women During WWI: Document A
Men went off to war, and women went to work in their place:
Women took jobs that were usually reserved for men, becoming railroad workers, coal miners, cooks, bricklayers, shipbuilders, & dockworkers.
At the same time, women continued to fill more traditional jobs as nurses, clerks, and teachers.
Women worked with the Food Administration & planted “Victory Gardens” so that more farm crops could be diverted to soldiers in Europe.

29. Women During WWI: Document A

30. Women During WWI: Document B
The army did not allow women to enlist as soldiers, but for the first time, the army did allow women to serve in noncombat roles.
Approximately 25,000 U.S. women served in the U.S. Army as nurses, telephone operators, typists, & ambulance drivers.
Many women worked as volunteers at Red Cross facilities or by encouraging the sale of war bonds.
Women in the War

31. Women During WWI: Document B

32. Women During WWI: Document C
President Wilson acknowledged the role women played in WWI: “The services of women during the supreme crisis have been of the most signal usefulness and distinction; it is high time that part of our debt should be acknowledged.”
While women were not paid the same as men, it helped build public support for woman suffrage.
In 1919, Congress passed the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. In 1920 the amendment was ratified by the states.

33. Women During WWI: Document C

34. African-Americans in WWI: Document A
WWI accelerated the Great Migration, the large-scale movement of hundreds of thousands of Southern blacks to cities in the North:
Many African Americans sought to escape racial discrimination in the Jim Crow South.
In the North, there were more job opportunities for African Americans in steel mills, munitions plants, and stockyards.
Northern manufacturers sent recruiting agents to distribute free railroad passes through the South to bring blacks into cities such as Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia.

35. African-Americans in WWI: Document A

36. African-Americans in WWI: Document B
During WWI, the U.S. military was segregated:
367,710 African Americans were drafted, but only 10% served in combat duty. Most blacks worked in Army Services of Supplies (SOS) units.
The 40,000 black soldiers who saw combat were part of the all-black 92nd or 93rd combat divisions.
When allowed to fight, they did so with honor. Several units fought Germans alongside French soldiers and 171 black soldiers were awarded the French Legion of Honor; By 1917, over 600 blacks were commissioned as officers in the U.S. Army.

37. African-Americans in WWI: Document B

38. African-Americans in WWI: Document C
African Americans who moved into the North faced discrimination & violent race riots:
In 1917, a race riot exploded in Illinois when white workers attacked blacks when African-Americans were hired as strikebreakers at a munitions plant; , 40 blacks and 9 whites died.
Another riot erupted in Chicago in 1919 after whites drowned an African American boy who swam at a white beach. African Americans retaliated, and several riots broke out in the city. Order was restored after several days of violence that involved about 10,000 people.

39. African-Americans in WWI: Document C

40. Socialism & the Red Scare: Document A
During WWI, Vladimir Lenin & the Bolsheviks overthrew the czarist regime of Russia & established the first communist nation, the USSR.
Communism is an economic & political system based on a single-party a dictatorship that strives for equality for all citizens. To equalize wealth, Communists seize private property & the government assumes ownership of factories, railroads, and businesses.
Waving their symbolic red flag, Communists hoped to inspire a worldwide revolution. Americans became swept in a “Red Scare.”

41. Socialism & the Red Scare: Document A

42. Socialism & the Red Scare: Document B
The Socialist Party of America formed in 1901 by Eugene Debs. By the First World War, the Debs had grown the Socialist Party to over 70,000 members
Debs was strongly against U.S. involvement in WWI & published a newsletter encouraging Americans to resist fighting in a “capitalists’ war”
Debs was convicted to a 10-year prison sentence for violating the Espionage & Sedition Acts by speaking out against the war & the draft
As a result of the highly nationalistic climate of America during the war, Socialism was seen as un-American & the party never recovered

43. Socialism & the Red Scare: Document B

44. Socialism & the Red Scare: Document C
By WWI, the Socialist Party had grown to 70,000 members including radicals & union workers who wanted a socialist revolution in America.
Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto called for workers to seize political power, take control of factories, & overthrow capitalism.
During WWI, factory workers were pushed to meet high production demands. Unions saw membership double & organized more than 6,000 strikes out during the war.
Every strike fueled the “Red Scare” & fears of a Bolshevik-style socialist revolution in America. .

45. Socialism & the Red Scare: Document C

46. Civil Liberties During WWI: Document A
President Wilson warned that WWI would require a redefinition of national loyalty, claiming "millions of [Germans] with native sympathies live amongst us.“
Congress passed the Espionage and Sedition Acts
Under these laws, a person could be fined up to $10,000 and jailed up to 20 years for interfering with or saying anything disloyal about the war effort. These laws clearly violated the First Amendment, guaranteeing freedom of speech.
Over 2,000 people were prosecuted, including newspaper editors, Socialists, anarchists, union leaders, & citizens who protested the draft
The Espionage and Sedition Acts targeted socialists and labor leaders. Eugene V. Debs was handed a ten-year prison sentence for speaking out against the war and the draft. The anarchist Emma Goldman received a two-year prison sentence and a $10,000 fine for organizing the No Conscription League. When she left jail, the authorities deported her to Russia. “Big Bill” Haywood and other leaders of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) were accused of sabotaging the war effort because they urged workers to strike for better conditions and higher pay. Haywood was sentenced to a long prison term. (He later skipped bail and fled to Russia.) Under such federal pressure, the IWW faded away

47. Civil Liberties During WWI: Document A

48. Civil Liberties During WWI: Document B
During WWI, the Supreme Court heard the case Schenck v US (1919) regarding free speech:
Charles Schenck, a Socialist, handed out anti-war leaflets that told Americans not to fight in WWI if they were drafted
Schenck was jailed under the Espionage & Sedition Acts, but he argued that his conviction violated his 1st Amendment right to free speech
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that under wartime conditions, his actions presented a “clear and present danger” to the U.S. and that his free speech was not protected

49. Civil Liberties During WWI: Document B
“ Protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting ‘Fire!’ in a theatre and causing a panic”
—Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in the case Schenck v US (1919)

50. Civil Liberties During WWI: Document C
During World War I, nativism & strong anti-German feelings grew:
German-Americans were called “Huns,” lost their jobs, changed their names
Orchestras refused to play Mozart, Bach, & Beethoven; Schools stopped teaching German; Sauerkraut was renamed “liberty cabbage”; Saloons stopped offering pretzels
Vigilante groups attacked anyone suspected of being unpatriotic; In April 1918, German-born baker Robert Prager was lynched in Illinois; A jury found the defendants not guilty

51. Civil Liberties During WWI: Document C
“I remember when they smashed out store windows at Uniontown that said Kraut on it. Nobody would eat Kraut. I remember even the great Williamson store, he went in and gathered up everything that was made in Germany, and had a big bonfire out in the middle of the street.”
—Lola Gamble Clyde on Anti-German Sentiment in Idaho during World War

52. The American Economy: Document A
World War I stimulated the U.S. economy & increased the American standard of living:
War-time production increased hourly wages by 20% in some industries; The average household income nearly doubled from 1916 to 1919
The U.S. commitment to total war meant that consumer goods Americans had to buy were not as available & were expensive during WWI
In the decade that followed WWI, Americans had more money to spend & a desire for goods they could not buy during the war. As a result, the 1920s were known as the “Roaring Twenties”

53. The American Economy: Document A

54. The American Economy: Document B
The United States emerged from World War I as the wealthiest nation in the world:
With the War Industries Board directing the economy & setting production quotas to meet the demand for military supplies, American businesses saw 300% increase in their profits
Before the war, the United States owed $3 billion to foreign nations; At the end of the war, foreign nations owed the U.S. $13 billion
Throughout the 1920s, the United States provided to loans to European nations to help the region rebuild after World War I

55. The American Economy: Document B
U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP), GDP is an indicator of economic health because it is the value of all goods and services made in the USA
Annual GDP
1914
$36.5
1915
$38.7
1916
$49.6
1917
$59.7
1918
$75.8
1919
$78.3
1920
$88.4
America began preparing for war
WWI comes to an end
Outbreak of WWI in Europe
US declaration of war

56. The American Economy: Document C
When World War I came to an end, Americans were ready for a “return to normalcy” & elected Republican President Warren Harding:
In the 1920s, America’s increased wealth led to a decade of consumer spending known as the “Roaring Twenties”
After the prohibition (1919) & women’s suffrage (1920) amendments were ratified, there were no more progressive reforms; Historians argue that WWI killed American desires to reform & stimulated desires to spend

57. The American Economy: Document C
“America’s present need is not heroics, but healing; not nostrums, but normalcy”
—President Warren Harding, campaign speech in 1920