America in World War I: U.S.

History Crash Course #30

Available at https://youtu.be/y59wErqg4Xg or just youtube/google “Crash Course US History 30”

1. The Great War lasted from 1914 to 1918 and cost

the lives of an estimated 16 million soldiers.

a. When war broke out, America remained neutral

because we were a little bit isolationist
but many Americans sided with the British

2. Why was the sinking of the Lusitania not the cause of the war?
The sinking of the Luisitania was not the cause of the war because the U.S. declared
war almost two years after the sinking of the ship. Also, one of the main causes of the
war was un restrained naval attacks with u-boats.

3. America’s primary contribution to the Entente Powers winning

the war was economic as we sent all sorts of weapons and money
“over there”. American troops didn’t arrive
until the spring of 1918 and eventually over 1 million
“doughboys” served under General Pershing

4. What are ways in which World War I made the national government much more
powerful than it had ever been?
With the creation of new agencies, the federal government was gaining a lot of control
and power. For example, the War Industry Board which took control over production of
things necessary for the war.

5. What were ways that the government used propaganda to get Americans to support the
war?
Cartoons, pamphlets, advertised animated shorts,

6. The Espionage Act of 1917 prohibited spying, interfering with the draft, and “false
statements” that might impede military success. The Sedition Act of 1918 Criminalized
statements that were intended to cast “contempt, scorn, or disrepute” on our form of
government or that advocated interference with the war effort.

7. How was World War I used to justify anti-immigrant feeling in the United States?
Biased IQ tests were used on soldiers to see the differences between different races and
 groups of people. The tests were used to try to force the blief that immigrants and people
of different races were lower than U.S. citizens.

8. New opportunities in wartime industry also provided incentives for African Americans
to move north, thus beginning the so-called Great Migration and the growth of black
populations in northern cities like Chicago and New York.

9. Disappointment over the outcome of World War I led the U.S. to, for the most part,
retreat into Isolation until World War II.