Yankee Blood Vs. German Blood
Speech by Theodore Roosevelt in August of 1918. Teachers and students alike will be shocked by the language in this speech - why doesn't this speech appear in document-anthologies of World War I?
12: Imperialism/World War I
The Allies' Armistice Demands - World War I Document Archive
These are the stipulations of the Armistice as announced by the German government. Teachers can share this with students and see what they notice. Would they bring attention to the fact that Germany is surrendering their entire navy and the Blockade still remained in effect? This means the starvation of German citizens continues
Letter from Harry S. Truman to Bess Wallace, November 10, 1918. Truman Papers - Family, Business, and Personal Affairs Papers.
"The Hun is yelling for peace like a stuck hog and I hope old daddy Foch makes him yell louder yet or throttles him one. Throttling would be too easy. When you see some of the things those birds did and then hear them put up the talk they do for peace it doesn't impress you at all. A complete and thorough threshing is all they've got coming and take my word they are getting it and getting it right."
Harry Truman’s World War I
Teachers can find letters here to see the war in the trenches through the eyes of a future American president. Many of the letters he wrote to his future wife provide insight into American opinion toward Germany. Look especially at those written in November of 1918
The House-Grey Memorandum, 1915-1916
Colonel House's diary details meetings he had with President Wilson and the British foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Gray, regarding a proposal that the United States call a peace conference with the intention of using Germany's anticipated refusal to participate as a reason to go to war with Germany. Students could be presented with this evidence to see how they can reconcile it with Wilson's public insistence that the US is neutral. Teachers can themselves consider how they acknowledge the fact that a private citizen (House) operating only at the request of the presdient, is corresponding with leaders of beligerant nations at war regarding the territorial arrangements they want after the war. The redrawing of Europe's map occurs long before Versailles
The Lusitania case - Google Books (1915)
Many quotes, reactions and perspectives on the sinking of the Lusitania - teachers could use this as source of material for analysis and synthesis exercises
Woodrow Wilson: Address to Naturalized Citizens at Convention Hall, Philadelphia
Just a few days after the sinking of the Lusitania, Wilson made this speech as a ceremony in which hundreds of immigrants became American citizens. How does this relate to the Lusitania and America's entry to the war? How would Wilson's depiction of immigration stand up today?
U.S. Policy on War Loans to Belligerents - World War I Document Archive
A short series of letters from Secretaries of State (first Bryan, then Lansing), bank officers and the Secretary of the Treasury concerning the advisability American bankers loaning to belligerents and the policy of neutrality. This could be a simple reading and analysis lesson - do economic relationships established through the extension of credit to nations at war contradict the policy of neutrality?
Germany's Response to U.S. Ultimatum Regarding Unrestricted U-Boat Warfare, 4 May 1916
Any teacher who actually reads the German response to Woodrow Wilson's protest of the sinking of the Sussex in the spring of 1915 would not use the phrase "pledge" (as in "Sussex Pledge") when teaching the incident because there is no use of the word "pledge" or promise this letter. Wilson referred to it as a pledge so as to shape American's understanding of the document, he did so with a purpose. What is remarkable is that Wilson not only changed the meaning of that document for Congress and the American people in 1915, but for generations of history students for (at least) the next century.
Records of the United States Food Administration | Series List | National Archives
This page describes the United States Food Administration of World War I for the National Archives. Teachers could share this with students instead of a textbook to explore the relationship between the government and business during wartime. Using Meyers book "A World Remade" teachers can show students that southern Democrats were more effective in keeping high prices for cotton than midwestern congressmen were in protecting wheat farmers
Berger v. United States (full text) :: 255 U.S. 22 (1921) :: Justia US Supreme Court Center
Look at the language used by a judge to describe a newspaper editor during World War I.
Proceedings of the Congress of Constructive Patriotism: - The National Security League
The National Security League a patriotic and nationalistic organization that supported a greatly expanded military, universal service, naturalization and Americanization of immigrants and national preparedness. This document can be analyzed for evidence of some segments of American public opinion on the eve of America's involvement in World War I
American Rhetoric: Woodrow Wilson -- "Final Address in Support of the League of Nations"
Excerpts of this speech can be used in several lessons
World War I - The Atlantic
Excellent resource for images
Episode 12: America’s Entry in to World War I | 15 Minute History
15 minute audio that could serve well as a homework assignment in listening skills. An historian is interviewed about the causes of World War I
U.S. Economy in World War I
Although this article focuses highlights economic elements of the US entry and outcome of World War I, teachers looking for a textbook replacement may find this an an effective means to give students a clear understanding of the war
Civil Liberties in Wartime - timeline
Three page illustrated timeline includes events from the Quasi-War with France, though the Civil War and the World Wars. Can be used by teachers to show connections across time
The Only Way to Defend Against Russia’s Information War - The New York Times
Students should be informed of od-ed pieces like to know how vital their work is
Picture of Nine Kings 1910
The funeral of King Edward VIII put them all in the same room - but events four years leader would drive them to war.
How the Horrific 1918 Flu Spread Across America | History | Smithsonian
The Year Montana Rounded Up Citizens for Shooting Off Their Mouths | History | Smithsonian
Remembering the 1918 Influenza Pandemic | Features | Center Disease Control
675,000 Americans died, in today's US, that's 1.75 million. Every student of US history should know this happened.
Philadelphia Threw a WWI Parade That Gave Thousands of Onlookers the Flu | History | Smithsonian
The influenza pandemic of 1918 killed 675,000 Americans in a matter of months. In today's America, that would mean 1.75 million. The event belongs in the US survey course, and this article can be an element in a lesson that deals with censorship of the press, public health planning or the social effects of an epidemic that was do deadly the average life expectancy of Americans dropped
The War to End All Wars | BackStory with the American History Guys
Podcast with segments on the jailing of Eugene Debs, the fear of soldiers going overseas and the US effort to develop chemical weapons.
1918 - Wilson's 14 Points in Walter Lippmann's handwriting
Files this alongside the question of Alexander Hamilton's role in the writing of Washington's Farewell Address. This is the 14 points of WIlson, written in Walter Lippman's handwriting, Lippman, as Assistant Secretary of War, worked on the "Inquiry" project, which forecast what the world would look like following the war. He is credited with drafting the 14 points. The accreditation "Wilson's" 14 points is incorrect
Edward L. Bernays and the Committee of Public Information
The manipulation of American public opinion during World War I could be a powerful and relevant lesson for 21st century students, yet it lies outside of the taught narrative canon. This site and the links from it can inspire teachers to find the primary documents to catalyze a powerful learning experience that speaks directly to students' lives today
WWI Home Front: Manipulating Minds: The War Propaganda Machine
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Why Teddy Roosevelt Tried to Bully His Way Onto the WWI Battlefield
Most students encounter Teddy Roosevelt's military bravado in the Spanish American War because the taught narrative canon stresses it. "Rough Riders" and "This country needs a war" can be found on many worksheets and standardized tests. This article describes his efforts to raise, organize and lead a force into battle at the start of American involvement in World War I. For teachers, this is a lite read that broadens understanding of TR, for students, it can show how many political leaders beyond the president are involved in foreign policy. They'll notice the way in which TR communicates with and uses Congress to pass legislation for him.
German WWI veteran describes killing a French corporal during a bayonet charge and articulates his view on war as a whole : CombatFootage
This 5 minute video a German veteran recounting his bayoneting of a French Corporal in World War I is riveting. It would fit well with Wilfred Own poetry or "All Quiet" excerpts, exploring what it was like for soldiers to kill each other up close. This should also be included with explanations of the new technology of warfare. It's an effective tool to communicate the personal impact of the war without being graphic
US Entry Into WW1 - YouTube
12 minute video that gives context to a lesson a primary document lesson about America's entry into the way