Patriotism

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"Joan of Arc Poster, World War I," 1914-1918. Courtesy of the Perkins School for the Blind via Digital Commonwealth.

To appease citizens who balked at the idea of increased taxes from the United States' involvement in the war, President Wilson began a bond campaign to fund military efforts and ease the burden to the taxpayer. The war bonds campaign raised nearly 21 billion dollars over the course of the conflict.

The campaign targeted women in particular, with the organization of bonds run by women’s clubs, the YWCA, and the Red Cross, which had wide female support. The Red Cross alone blossomed from a mere 267 chapters nationwide to a staggering 2,300 over a few months in 1917, with volunteering women attending chapters to package supplies and produce clothes for the soldiers.