A Spirit of Sacrifice: New York State in the First World War (logo) NYSM Logo

"OVER HERE": The Home Front

World War I transformed the American economy. The United States became a leading contributor to the Allied cause. When the U.S. finally entered the war in 1917, American industrial production and agricultural output became critical to the beleaguered Allies. The need for skilled labor on the home front became nearly as great as the Army’s need for soldiers.

 

By the end of the war, more than one million workers were employed by 38,000 companies across New York State manufacturing materiel for the war effort.

 

The declaration of war brought all of New York State industry into the war effort. While some companies, such as Remington Arms in Ilion, had already been involved in producing munitions for the Allied armies, many other companies switched to wartime production. Savage Arms in Utica began producing machine guns for the U.S. Army. Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, Jacob Dold Packing Company, and Pierce-Arrow Motorcar Company in Buffalo all received significant government contracts. Bausch and Lomb in Rochester produced optical equipment for the military. Eastman Kodak in Rochester, General Electric in Schenectady, and Alcoa’s plant in Massena also shifted to wartime production.

MADE IN NEW YORK

War Contract Analysis Blueprint, 1918

This blueprint, created by the War Department’s Division of Information, shows nationwide distribution of companies holding contracts for war production. New York State is the undisputed leader.


New York State Archives

 

“…The citizenship of a country is worthless unless in a crisis it shows the spirit of the two million Americans who in this mighty war have come forward to serve…and of the other millions who would now be beside them overseas if the chance had been given them.”

 

--Theodore Roosevelt, 1919, The Great Adventure:
   Present Day Studies in American Nationalism, 1919

 


Theodore Roosevelt, ca. 1915

Courtesy of the Library of Congress

REMINGTON ARMS COMPANY

Ilion, New York

 

When war erupted in August 1914 in Europe, Remington Arms Company was flourishing as a manufacturer of civilian sporting rifles. Save for a few government contracts for ammunition, the company did not manufacture military firearms. As the need for weapons by the Allied Powers rose, Britain, France, and Russia all turned to Remington. Production increased dramatically in Ilion, leading to a massive expansion of the company’s factory there. Employment rose from 1,200 in 1914 to 15,000 in 1917. A large portion of these new workers were young women from farms across central New York State. Demand quickly exceeded capacity and the company constructed new plants in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and a cartridge factory in Hoboken, New Jersey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With America’s entry into the war, Remington was virtually the only American manufacturer with the capacity to arm the rapidly growing American Army. By the end of the war, the company had manufactured nearly 70 percent of all the rifles used by the A.E.F. and over 50 percent of the small-arms ammunition used by the United States and its allies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the U.S. Army’s planned expansion to four million men, no manufacturer could meet this demand to equip them with rifles. Remington suggested modifying the British Enfield rifles the company was manufacturing to accommodate the .30-06 caliber American ammunition. The “American Enfield” was adopted as the U.S. Rifle, Model 1917. By December, Ilion was producing 3,000 of the M1917 rifles each day.

SAVAGE ARMS COMPANY
Utica, New York

 

Founded in 1895 by Arthur W. Savage, the Savage Arms Company primarily manufactured a line of sporting rifles for the first two decades of its existence. Savage Arms supplied more than 70,000 Lewis machine guns to the British Army at the beginning of the war. Upon America’s entry into the conflict, the company was contracted to manufacture Lewis machine guns for the U.S. Army. As with Remington Arms and other firearms manufacturers, Savage needed to manufacture the Lewis guns with minor modifications to enable the weapon to fire American .30-06 cartridges rather than the British .303 caliber.

 

 

 

“Ready for Action"

This poster was produced by the Savage Arms Company

Courtesy of the Oneida County Historical Society

ALCOA MANUFACTURING
Massena, New York

 

Alcoa, headquartered in New York City, opened its plant in Massena in 1903. The company produced a wide variety of aluminum products. When war broke out, the company shifted to the production of military equipment.

With aluminum imports from Europe suspended, Alcoa saw a period of rapid growth from 1915 to 1918, though profits were restricted by tight governmental price controls. By the time the United States entered the war, 90 percent of Alcoa’s manufacturing was toward military equipment including mess kits, dog tags, cables, vehicle parts, and aluminum powder for high explosives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mess Kit, 1918

Alcoa, Massena, New York

This meat kit was produced from aluminum processed by Alcoa at the company’s Massena plant.

New York State Museum Collection, H-2015.36.3 A-C

 

American Soldier eating from his mess kit, ca. 1917

Courtesy of Guns-Gas-Trenches.tumblr.com

GENERAL ELECTRIC

Schenectady, New York

 

When war was declared, the General Electric facilities in Schenectady were at the forefront of electronic and radio research and manufacturing. These facilities housed the first corporate research laboratory in the nation, and were heavily involved in the war effort in the production of searchlights, turbines, motors, airplane compasses, radio tubes, and many other items. Among the most important work being done at GE was the development of a device to aid in the detection of German U-boats.

General Electric Alternator

In 1918, General Electric unveiled an alternator that helped to enable leaders in Washington, D.C., to communicate with the Allies and the American Expeditionary Forces in France.
Courtesy of the Library of Congress

ENDICOTT-JOHNSON COMPANY

Binghamton, New York

 

The Endicott Johnson Corporation was originally formed in 1854 as the Lester Brothers Boot and Shoe Company.  In 1890, it was purchased by the founder of the Endicott Shoe Company of Dedham, Massachusetts, Henry Bradford Endicott, who partnered with the Binghamton-born factory foreman, George F. Johnson. During World War I, the company manufactured the vast majority of boots for the U.S. Army. At its peak shortly after the war, Endicott Johnson employed nearly 20,000 people.

 

Deployment of Endicott-Johnson Employees

This 1916 photograph of Endicott-Johnson employees, who were part of the New York National Guard’s 1st Artillery Regiment, was likely taken before the men deployed to the Mexican Border in 1916.
Courtesy of the Special Collections, Preservation, and University Archives, State University of New York at Binghamton

 

EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY

Rochester, New York

 

Kodak was heavily involved in wartime contracts with the U.S. Army and Navy during the First World War. The company began developing aerial cameras for use in airplanes in 1915. By 1916, Kodak had two models in testing with the Navy. In October 1917, the company introduced the F & S Aero Camera Model A-1, the first U.S. military aerial camera. In addition to manufacturing cameras and film for the Army Signal Corps and Airplanes, Kodak assisted in experimentation with camouflaging ships, improved periscopes, and in the development of inflammable paints and varnishes.

 

Aerial camera in use during World War I

Courtesy of Harry S. Truman Library and Museum

 

 

F & S Aero Camera Model A-1

Folmer & Schwing Division of Eastman Kodak Company, Gift of W. W. Rogers

This model camera was used by the U.S. Army and Navy Air Service. A handheld plate camera, it could be fitted with the Graflex Magazine holder with 12 exposures. The Hawk-Eye Aero lens that it came with was one of the first photographic lenses manufactured by Eastman Kodak Company.

Courtesy of the George Eastman Museum

American farm production was critical to not only American and Allied troops overseas, but also to the civilian populations in Europe. After three years of war, food supplies were desperately short in Europe. By the time war was declared, the United States already supplied 90 percent of the wheat consumed in Great Britain. A poor wheat crop in 1915–1916 exacerbated the need for the United States to both increase production and decrease consumption. This placed an extraordinary burden on Americans in lower economic classes, who were already struggling with the rising cost of foodstuffs. Civic mindedness was encouraged through rationing, the planting of war gardens, and the jarring of food to prolong its freshness.

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION

Food Riots in New York City, 1917

On February 21, 1917, nearly 400 women marched on New York City Hall to petition the Mayor for assistance with rising food prices. Poor families were threatened with starvation as the cost of basic food items skyrocketed.


Courtesy of the Library of Congress

 

Food Conservation

On May 5, 1917, Herbert Hoover was appointed to lead the U.S. Food Administration and to implement rationing and conservation of food. In New York State, Governor Whitman established the New York State Food Commission to oversee the state’s conservation efforts.

 

 

 

 

“Food is Ammunition” (1918)

Artist: J.E. Sheridan

Printer: Heywood Strasser & Voight Litho. Co.

Publisher: U.S. Food Administration

New York State Museum Collection, H-1975.107.2

 

Home Grown

Cities, towns, schools, and factories allotted plots of land for use as war gardens. In New York State, war gardens helped increase agricultural production by an estimated 30 percent.

 

 

 

 

“Raised ‘em Myself” (1919)
Artist: Anonymous

Printer: American Lithographic Co., New York, New York

Publisher: United States School Garden Army, Bureau of Education, Department of the Interior

New York State Museum Collection, H-1975.85.4

 

When war broke out in Europe, many Americans sought to alleviate the suffering of civilian populations in war-ravaged nations. New Yorkers responded to their calls for aid with substantial generosity. By June 1918, New York State had contributed nearly $47 million, 2.5 million pounds of clothing for Belgian Relief, 63 million pounds of surgical dressings, and 5.5 million pounds of hospital clothing to the American Red Cross.

 

News of atrocities in Europe sparked the creation of several new agencies as well. Following American entry into the war, other organizations such as the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), Young Women’s Christian Organization (YWCA), and Knights of Columbus sought to provide services to American soldiers of the A.E.F.

CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS

Community Effort

Civilians were encouraged to contribute items that would improve the comfort of American soldiers. In Buffalo alone, the local Red Cross chapter employed nearly 20,000 knitters who produced 395,738 knitted garments.

 

 

 

 

 

“Our Boys Need Sox”

Artist: Unknown

Printer: American Lithographic Co.,

Publisher: American Red Cross

New York State Museum Collection, H-1976.147.7

Knitting for the Troops

School age boys from Cooperstown, Otsego County, knitting for the Cooperstown Chapter of the American Red Cross during the war. In response to the boys’ efforts, the Superintendent of Knitting for the Red Cross’ Atlantic Division commended Cooperstown High School for their “manly boys.”


Courtesy of the New York State Archives

 

YMCA and YWCA

The YMCA and YWCA provided morale and welfare services to soldiers in the U.S. Army through the operation of 1,500 canteens at training camps in the United States and with the A.E.F. in France. The Y also established more than 4,000 recreational facilities and raised more than $235 million for its relief efforts.

 

 

 

 

 

“His Home Over There” (ca. 1917–1918)

Artist: Unknown

Printer: American Lithographic Co.,

Publisher: American Red Cross

New York State Museum Collection, H-1976.147.7

LABOR SHORTAGES

With four million men entering military service, the United States found itself facing a significant labor shortage. The competing forces of fewer men in the workforce and the need for increased production for the war effort resulted in a dire need for laborers in industrial production and agriculture. Unprecedented employment opportunities emerged for young men—not old enough to enlist—and women as they were actively recruited to fill these positions.

The Boys’ Working Reserve

The U.S. Department of Labor announced the formation of the Boys’ Working Reserve to enlist the help of boys between the ages of 16 and 21 and direct their efforts to needed industrial and agricultural endeavors.

 

New York officials feared the loss of manpower on the state’s farms could result in a severe food shortage. The Farm Cadet Program of the New York State Boys’ Working Reserve Program allowed high school age boys to enroll as Farm Cadets either on a family farm or on another farm in the state. Over 18,600 farm cadets helped plant, cultivate, and harvest crops on New York State farms.

 

 

 

Papers for the New York State Boys’ Working Reserve Program

New York State Archives

Women in the Workforce

While World War I did not bring a dramatic rise in the number of women in the labor force, the conflict did result in a shift of women into jobs that had traditionally been closed to them. Many women moved into jobs in industrial production and were afforded greater opportunities in white-collar positions such as office clerks, stenographers, and bookkeepers. The increases in these fields were offset by decreases in women working in more traditional occupations such as seamstresses and housekeepers.

 

Organizations like the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) sought to improve the conditions of and care for the young women answering the nation’s call during the war as well as the soldiers.

 

“For Every Fighter a Woman Worker” (ca. 1918)

Artist: Adolph Treidler

Printer: The American Lithographic Company

Publisher: YWCA
New York State Museum Collection, H-1973.94.1 Z

 

Women's Suffrage Movement

The contributions of women to the war effort in industry, agriculture, as nurses, and in the innumerable charitable campaigns led by women, resulted in increased support for the suffrage movement in the United States. This contributed to the passage of women’s suffrage in New York State in 1917, and to the passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution in 1920.

 

“We Are Ready To Work Beside You”

Artist: Unknown

Printer: Unknown

Publisher: Unknown
New York State Museum Collection, H-1976.147.4

 

FINANCING THE WAR

In order to pay for the war, the Wilson administration sought to raise the necessary funds through a combination of increased taxation, loans from the Federal Reserve System, and Liberty Bonds and War Savings Stamps directly from the American people. When Congress delayed raising taxes, the government turned to borrowing to finance the war effort.

Liberty Bonds

President Wilson authorized the first Liberty Bond issue on April 24, 1917. Between 1917 and 1919, four Liberty Loan drives were held and a fifth, Victory Loan, occurred five months after the Armistice to continue to pay for the two million American soldiers still in Europe. There was tremendous pressure to purchase these bonds and not participating was viewed to be unpatriotic. Over 66 million Americans pledged more than $24 billion to the war effort. New Yorkers were in the forefront of this endeavor. During the first two loan drives alone, New York State’s citizens accounted for one-third of the $2.5 billion subscribed.

 

Bonds of various values were available for purchase so that everyone could contribute no matter their financial situation. Thirty percent of the Liberty Bond sales during the war were from people earning less than $2,000 a year.

 

“You Buy a Liberty Bond Lest I Perish” (1917)

Artist: G.R. Macauley

Printer: Unknown

Publisher: Liberty Loan of 1917
New York State Museum Collection, H-1972.112.1 S

Community War Chests
Across New York State in 1918, cities and towns began to raise money for the war effort through community war chests in order to finance various wartime needs. The practice was first implemented in Syracuse and was soon followed by the establishment of war chests in Rochester, as well as Yates and Jefferson Counties. In general, funds remaining in these community war chests at the end of the conflict were used toward the erection of local monuments and war memorials.

 

 

The Community War Chest Drive in Rochester in May 1918 raised more than $4.8 million from 117,064 residents of the city.

 

“Will She Find it Filled?” (1918)

Artist: Lillian O. Titus

Printer: Unknown

Publisher: Rochester War Chest
New York State Museum Collection, H-1972.112.1 S

 

War Savings Stamps (WSS)

The U.S. Government sold War Savings Stamps (WSS) that earned four percent interest on the initial investment, compounded quarterly. Stamps could be redeemed for cash once they reached their maturity date.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Joan of Arc Saved France” (1918)

Artist: Haskell Coffin

Printer: United States Printing & Lithograph Company

Publisher: War Savings Stamps Campaign, U.S. Treasury Department

New York State Library, Manuscripts and Special Collections

CURTISS AEROPLANE COMPANY

The Curtiss Aeroplane Company was established in 1916 in Hammondsport, New York, with company headquarters later relocated to Buffalo. Curtiss became the largest aircraft manufacturer in the United States during the war, employing 21,000 workers and manufacturing 10,000 airplanes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Men Wanted to Build Aeroplanes” (1917)

Artist: E.W. Pirson

Printer: Unknown

Publisher: Curtiss Aeroplane Company, Buffalo, New York

New York State Library, Manuscripts and Special Collections

WATERVLIET  ARSENAL

During World War I, the Watervliet Arsenal constructed large-bore cannons for coastal defense and naval warships. In 1918 alone, Watervliet manufactured 465 cannons.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Brain & Brawn” (1918)

Artist: Edward Buyck

Printer: Burleigh Litho. Co., Troy, New York

Publisher: U.S. Army Ordnance Department, Watervliet Arsenal

New York State Museum Collection, H-1975.8.6

EDWARD BUYCK (1888–1960)

Artist

 

Born in Bruges, Belgium, Buyck studied at the Royal Academies in Bruges and Antwerp, and finally, at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris, France. When the German Army invaded Belgium in 1914, Buyck sent his family to England and safety while he joined the Belgian Army. He was wounded and discharged from military service. After rejoining his family in England, Buyck immigrated to the United States and eventually arrived in Albany.

 

When the United States entered the war in 1917, he put his artistic talents to use for the war effort, creating several posters in the Capital Region. After the war, Buyck married Mary Willard Vine and settled in Slingerlands, New York. During the 1930s, Edward Buyck remained an active artist in New York’s Capital Region.

 

 

Dutch Coppersmith

Edward C. Buyck, Oil on canvas, 1932

New York State Museum Collection, H-1972.101.1

 

“The American Enfield”

U.S. Army Rifle, Model 1917

Remington Arms Company, Ilion, New York

New York State Museum Collection, H-1971.78.1

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