It’s easy to lose hours perusing theWorld Digital Library, stumbling across fascinating finds, clicking from place, to time, to topic, to type of item, to institution. Explore sketches of the Amistad captives, paintings of Peking opera characters, and illuminated manuscripts. Just a month ago in September 3rd edition of What We’re Reading we linked to a blog post’s collection of 20 Fascinating Ancient Maps found in the online library. Inspired by this roundup, we’ve searched the World Digital Library, and come across a number of interesting war posters. See below.
Australia: Australia has Promised Britain 50,000 More Men; Will You Help Us Keep that Promise
Canada: Bushmen and Sawmill Hands Wanted. Join the 224th Canadian Forestry Battalion
England: Women are Working Day and Night to Win the War
French-Canadians: Enlist!: Re-form the Salaberry Riflery Regiments
Germany: Subscribe to the War Loan! The Army and Navy Expect it from You!
Pozsony (present-day Bratislava, Slovakia): National War Relief Exhibition in Pozsony
United States: 7th War Loan. Now–All Together.
If you’re interested in posters like these you may want to check out the pamphlets in the AHA’s G.I. Roundtable series. Between 1943 and 1945 the AHA prepared these pamphlets for the Army’s Division of Information and Education. It was the army’s intent that these pamphlets should “increase the effectiveness of the soldiers and officers as fighters during the war and as citizens after the war.” Check out all of the titles here, including “What is Propaganda,” “How Far Should Government Control Radio?,” “Do You Want Your Wife To Work after the War?” and more. It’s a fascinating look back.
This post first appeared on AHA Today.
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