mss036 World War Poster Collection Archives staff University of Minnesota Libraries 1970s
University of Minnesota Libraries Minneapolis, MN 55455
EAD encoding by Leslie Czechowski March 2005 English Pillsbury, Mrs. Charles and others World war poster collection circa 1914-1945 University of Minnesota Libraries. Literary Manuscripts Collections, Manuscripts Division [mss] 204.25 cubic feet Posters are from World Wars I and II and the German election of 1932. War posters are from U.S., Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Latin America, and Scandinavia. Subjects include recruiting, war bond sales, food conservation, civil defense and many other topics. Mss 36 English, German, Italian, French, and others High Bay Administrative Information Restrictions on Access

Available for use in Manuscripts Division reading room.

 Restrictions on Use

The posters were published by government agencies, charitable organizations, and commercial interests. Materials published by the U.S. Government Printing Office are in the public domain and, as such, not subject to copyright restriction. Copyright for other materials falls under different guidelines. Please consult with the Archivist.

 Preferred Citation

World War Poster Collection (Mss 36), Literary Manuscripts Collection, University of Minnesota Libraries, Minneapolis.

 Acquisition

The first group of posters in the collection were acquired with the assistance of Mrs. Charles Pillsbury who donated them to the University Libraries. For further acquisitions the provenance is uncertain.

 Alternate Form Available

These posters have been digitized for a joint project with the Minneapolis Public Library that was funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The Web site for the project, "A Summons to Comradeship" is located at: http://digital.lib.umn.edu/warposters/warpost.html

 Arrangement

The collection is organized in four major sections.

World War I German Election, 1932 World War II Additional Materials Scope and Content Note

The posters are from World Wars I and II and the German election of 1932. War posters are from U.S., Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Latin America, and Scandinavia. The collection comprises over 6,000 items, consisting largely of posters but containing a few related materials that are not of poster size. Also, a few items have been included that are outside the scope of the collection but are closely related by time or other circumstance.

The collection contains posters from government, commercial, and charitable organizations. It is multi-national in scope and covers veterans' benefits, war bonds and loans, military recruitment and morale, civil defense, industrial production, freedom and loyalty campaigns, international welfare organizations, prices and rationing, transportation, health and safety, labor organizations, films and theatre, food production, sports and leisure, recruiting of women in military and non-combatant organizations, special events, anti-war movements, and other topics. The visual, political and social content of these posters demonstrate "…that in time of national emergency the artist can perform a service as valuable in its way as that of any other worker in defense." Artists such as James Montgomery Flagg, James H. Daugherty, Ben Shahn, Gil Spear, Otto Fischer and many others are represented in the collection.

 Other Finding Aid

A more detailed listing of the posters in the collection is available in the Archives.

 Index Terms

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the University of Minnesota Libraries. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

World War, 1914-1918 -- Posters World War, 1939-1945 -- Posters Elections -- Germany -- 1932 -- Posters Detailed Contents

The following section contains an overview of the materials in the collection. A more detailed list is available in the Archives.

World War I Posters United States World War I Welfare Organizations Non-Combatant Service Organizations Civilian Defense War Bonds Foreign Recruiting Posters Advertisement Labor U.S. Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation Patriotic Films and Theatre Miscellaneous Military Recruiting

Further divided by service: Marine, Navy, Army

 Food and Fuel Administration Food Production and Conservation Italian World War I Canadian World War I British World War I Food Conservation War Bonds Sports, Theatre, Lectures Proclamations and Notices Recruiting Women's Military Recruiting Civilian Defense Military Uniforms Miscellaneous French World War I War Loans War Charities Special Events, Exhibitions Special Days Miscellaneous Post-World War I United States Anti-War Posters German Election Posters, 1932

The posters are divided into Nazi and Non-Nazi groups.

Also includes posters from the Weimer Republic (1918-1932), Nazi post-election posters, Nazi travel posters, and post-World War II posters.

 World War II Posters United States World War II War Production War Loans Recruiting 1932-1941 Keep Quiet! Civilian War Work Resource Conservation, Rationing, and Price Control Health and Safety War Charities Newsmaps Miscellaneous British World War II Miscellaneous Health and Safety Recruiting, War Work, Volunteers Air Raids War Bonds Keep Quiet! Pictures of War Leaders Colonies Battle Scenes and Military Equipment French Language World War II

Some in English from the French Information Agency

 Canadian World War II French World War II Latin America World War II Scandinavian World War II Additional Materials Hungarian World War I

In portfolio

 British World War I (2 volumes) War Chest Drive, May 1918

1 volume that includes mounted posters, literature, badges & pins, etc.

 Volume to promote U. S. bond sales, circa 1940

Includes examples of posters and advertising to promote U.S. bond sales in newspapers and magazines.