"1778-1943 Americans Will Always Fight for Liberty" Poster
date: label: date made
content: 1943
label: associated date
content: 1941 - 1945
notes: label: Description
content: Physical Description
label: Description
content: Four-color print on paper.
label: Description
content: Specific History
label: Description
content: Produced by the United States Office of War Information, Washington, D.C. Printed by the United States Government Printing Office. Distributed by the Division of Public Inquiries, Office of War Information.
label: Description
content: Series: Office of War Information Poster, No. 26
label: Description
content: To control the form of war messages, the government created the U.S. Office of War Information in June 1942. OWI sought to review and approve the design and distribution of government posters. Posters and their messages were seen as "war graphics," combining the sophisticated style of contemporary graphic design with the promotion of war aims.
label: Description
content: Over time, OWI developed six war-information themes for its own internal use, as well as to guide other issuing agencies and major producers of mass-media entertainment.
label: Description
content: 1. The Nature of the Enemy - general or detailed descriptions of this enemy, such as, he hates religion, persecutes labor, kills Jews and other minorities, smashes home life, debases women, etc.
label: Description
content: 2. The Nature of our Allies - the United Nations theme, our close ties with Britain, Russia, and China, Mexicans and Americans fighting side by side on Bataan and on the battlefronts.
label: Description
content: 3. The Need to Work - the countless ways in which Americans must work if we are to win the war, in factories, on ships, in mines, in fields, etc.
label: Description
content: 4. The Need to Fight - the need for fearless waging of war on land, sea, and skies, with bullets, bombs, bare hands, if we are to win.
label: Description
content: 5. The Need to Sacrifice - Americans are willing to give up all luxuries, devote all spare time to the war effort, etc., to help win the war.
label: Description
content: 6. The Americans - we are fighting for the four freedoms, the principles of the Atlantic Charter, Democracy, and no discrimination against races and religions, etc.
label: Description
content: ref: Alan Cranston to Norman Ferguson, 17 November 1942, folder: California Trip, box 1078, entry E222, MC 148, RG 208, NACP. From <i>Design for Victory: World War II Posters on the American Home Front,</i> William L. Bird Jr. and Harry R. Rubenstein. Princeton Architectural Press, New York. 1998.
label: Description
content: This particular poster fits neatly into theme six.
label: Description
content: General History
label: Description
content: The Division of Military History and Diplomacy has been collecting recruiting posters for more than fifty years. Recruiting as an activity of the military is important to the understanding of who serves in uniform, during both war and peace, and the visual materials used to market military service. The collection contains examples of early Civil War broadsides, World War I posters, including the original artwork for Uncle Sam as drawn by Montgomery Flagg, and World War II posters, which show the recruiting of men and women for all services and auxiliary organizations. The collection contains primarily Civil War, Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II recruiting posters for the army, navy and some marines. More modern-day recruiting materials are also contained in the collection, and cover a broad range of army recruiting slogans.
label: Description
content: Posters during World War II were designed to instill in people a positive outlook, a sense of patriotism, and confidence. They linked the war in trenches with the war at home. From a practical point, they were used to encourage all Americans to help with the war effort. The posters called on every man, woman, and child to endure the personal sacrifice and domestic adjustments to further the national agenda. They encouraged rationing, conservation, and sacrifice. In addition, the posters were used for recruitment, productivity, and motivation as well as for financing the war effort. The stark, colorful graphic designs elicited strong emotions. The posters played to the fears, frustrations, and faith in freedoms that lingered in people's minds during the war.
place: label: used
content: United States
topic: label: related event
content: World War II
label: related event
content: American Revolution
label: related event
content: The Great Depression and World War II
setName: label: See more items in
content: Military and Society: Armed Forces History, Military
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content: Military
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content: Art
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content: ThinkFinity
label: Exhibition
content: Price of Freedom
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Eugene A. Tilleaux
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: AF.56184
label: catalog number
content: 56184
label: accession number
content: 199084
objectType: label: Object Name
content: poster
label: Other Terms
content: poster; Owi
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: ink (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 28 in x 22 in; 71.12 cm x 55.88 cm