The Home Front During World War I in the United States

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1 The Home Front During World War I in the United States * Today s focus will be on the mobilization of the United States economy and military in preparation for entering into the Great War!

2 EQ & Standards EQ: How was life altered for civilian Americans during WWI? CS: 3. Evaluate the long-term impact of America s entry into World War I on national politics, the economy, and society. B. Analyze the experiences of the war s homefront including the use of propaganda, women s increased role in industry, the marshaling of industrial production, the Great Migration, the institution of a draft, and the suppression of individual liberties resulting in the First Red Scare.

3 The U.S. Government used Progressive ideas to SHAPE PUBLIC OPINNION * April 1917, President Wilson created the Committee on Public Information to sell the war to the American people (George Creel) * * The committee used newsprint, posters, radio, telegraph, cable and movies to broadcast its message created and distributed propaganda! * * recruited 75,000 "Four Minute Men volunteers who spoke about the war at social events for an ideal length of four minutes (Why? HA!)

4 The U.S. Government instituted a DRAFT to prepare the military for the war * May 1917, the United States Congress passed the Selective Service Act authorized the government to raise an army for the American entry into World War * * All males aged 21 to 30 were required to register for military service would be selected randomly through a lottery system! (2.8 million drafted during the war) * Effective system relied on local boards to determine draft status

5 American Women on the Home Front * First time in American history that women officially served in the armed forces noncombatant positions (clerical, radio operators, electricians, chemists, photographers) * Women had always been nurses in the military but were not really in the military had no rank and were not technically enlisted in either the army or navy * As men left for the military, women began to take men s jobs on the assembly lines of factories, producing tanks, trucks and munitions for the war effort *

6 The U.S. Government used Progressive ideas to manage the ECONOMY and fund the war efforts * Congress created several key wartime agencies to manage the effort between the gov t and private industries * July 1917, Congress created the War Industries Board to coordinate the production of war materials (Bernard Baruch) * * Encouraged mass production, set production quotas, ordered construction of necessary factories, set prices and allocated raw materials * Dealt with labor management disputes arising from increased demand for products

7 The U.S. Government used Progressive ideas to manage the ECONOMY and fund the war efforts * August 1917, Woodrow Wilson created the United States Food Administration by Executive Order to coordinate food production with the war effort (Herbert Hoover) * * Agency was responsible for increasing food production while reducing civilian consumption * Motto was: Food Will Win the War Don t Waste It (focus was on WHEAT) * Encouraged families to conserve food and grow their own vegetables in victory gardens * Wheatless Mondays, Meatless Tuesdays, Porkless Thursdays

8 The U.S. Government used Progressive ideas to manage the ECONOMY and fund the war efforts * August 1917, Woodrow Wilson created the Federal Fuel Administration by Executive Order to address concerns about a steady supply of fuel to support military and industrial operations (Harry Garfield) * * Fuel committees were organized down to the county level in each state in order to conserve coal and oil and divert those resources to the war in Europe * The Fuel Administration had the power to set and enforce prices of coal and energy * To conserve energy, the Fuel Administration introduced Daylight Savings Time (1918) and shortened the workweek for factories producing non-essential war materials

9 The U.S. Government used Progressive ideas to MOBILIZE THE WORKFORCE in support of The Great War * To keep factories running smoothly, Wilson established the National War Labor Board in 1918, which forced management to negotiate with labor unions * * Purpose was to arbitrate disputes between workers and employers in order to ensure labor reliability and productivity during the war * Nearly all labor unions were strong supporters of the war effort they minimized strikes as wages soared and full employment was reached

10 Paying For the War LIBERTY BONDS! * By the end of the war, the United States had spent $32 billion - $20 billion of which was raised through the issuance of Liberty Bonds * * Bonds are pieces of paper that a government sells individuals and then pays them back at a later date with interest included * * There were four issues of Liberty Bonds: April 1917 Emergency Loan Act, $5 billion in bonds (3.5%) October 1917 Second Liberty Loan, $3 billion in bonds (4%) April 1918 Third Liberty Loan, $3 billion in bonds (4.5%) September 1918 Fourth Liberty Loan, $6 billion in bonds (4.25%)

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