World War 1 & Interwar Period (1914-1938)
On April 16th, 1917 America officially entered WWI or “The Great War”. During the next year and a half, millions of Americans served overseas as well as supported the war efforts on the Homefront. In 1914, when fighting first broke out in WWI, Woodrow Wilson proclaimed that the US would remain neutral. It wasn’t until the sinking of the British ocean liner Lusitania by a German U-boat in 1915, where 128 Americans were killed along with almost 1,800 other people when the United States decided to no longer remain neutral.
Formally known as the Signal Corps Female Telephone Operators Unit, “Hello Girls” was the nickname for American female switchboard operations during World War I.
Following WWI, as many soldiers waited to be sent home, the Inter-Allied Games, which were similar to the Olympics, were created to build further companionship.
Winston Churchill, despite Great Britain not wanting to create more armored vehicles, wanted to experiment with the concept of a “landship” that would move across land in the same way a ship moved in the ocean.
George S. Patton wanted a shoulder patch for the newly formed Tank Corps after seeing the patch worn by the 82nd Infantry Division.
