World War I Liberty bonds and loans poster collection

Posters were a major tool used primarily by the government for the widespread dissemination of information during World War I. Nations on both sides of the conflict distributed posters widely to increase support, encourage action, and boost morale. The United States government’s Committee on Public Information formed a Division of Pictorial Publicity in 1917, which was responsible for creating the posters. Despite its fairly late entry into the war, the United States produced more war posters than any other country. The posters were so popular and successful because they were both visually appealing, as well as easy to produce and disseminate. They were posted on the sides of buildings, hung in the windows of homes, and reproduced in magazines.

A Liberty bond, or Liberty loan, was a United States war bond that was sold to support the Allied cause in World War I. Thanks in part to the war poster effort, subscribing to the bonds became a symbol of patriotic duty to many Americans. The Act of Congress that authorized the Liberty Bonds is still used today as the authority under which all U.S. Treasury bonds are issued; for instance, Liberty bonds were issued following the September 11th terrorist attacks.

The Committee on Public Information, also known as the CPI or the Creel Committee, was an independent agency of the United States government created to bolster public support of America’s participation in World War I. President Woodrow Wilson established the committee by executive order on April 13, 1917. The organization had over twenty bureaus and divisions, with commissioner’s offices in nine foreign countries, and used newspapers, posters, radio, telegraph, and movies to broadcast its message.