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World War II - Government

Pre-Statehood Era: 1700-1818

Early Statehood: 1818-1861

Civil War Era: 1861-1865

Late 19th Century: 1866-1900

Early 20th Century: 1900-1914

World War I: 1914-1918

Roaring Twenties: 1918-1929

Great Depression: 1930-1941

World War II: 1941-1945

Cold War Era: 1946-1991

Millennium: 1991-Present

Lesson Plans

Resources

Crime and Punishment

Communication from the Clark County Director of Civilian Defense Concerning Blackout Violations, August 7th, 1943

  • This letter from the Director of Civilian Defense in Clark County to the State Civil Protection Committee sought guidance regarding a citizen that refused to participate in a blackout exercise. Blackouts were performed in preparation of foreign attack during World War II.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 25. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc25.html

Philanthropy and Government Aid

Communication from Mrs. Wm. D. Battey Concerning Day-Care, August 25th, 1945 / Transcription

  • This letter from Mrs. William D. Battey to Governor Green asked for help regarding the closing of nurseries after the end of the war. Many women continued to work while waiting on their husbands to return from war, and were not able to stay at home with children.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 47. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc47.html

Public Health and Safety

War Food Communique No. 1, Meat Rationing, October 1942

  • This communique from the Madison Civil Defense Council asked to ration meat following February 1st, 1943 to provide more meat for soldiers. Adults were asked to restrict meat intake to 2 1/2 pounds per week, use all of the meat product, and to share meat with neighbors.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 21. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc21.html

Evite Accidentes, WPA Poster, 1942

  • This poster by Miguel A. Rodridguez shows a mangled man lying on the sidewalk next to an automobile that has crashed into a lamp post. Written in Spanish, it translates as: "Avoid Accidents: Do Not Remain in the Street During an Alarm."

  • Citation: “Evite Accidentes: No Se Quede en la Calle Durante una Alarma / 6 MAR,” Illinois: WPA, 1942, accessed through WPA Posters collection, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress. http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/wpapos/item/98507186/

War and Military

Victory Garden Diagram, March 1942

  • This diagram displays a suggested layout for a Victory Garden. Victory Gardens were created to solve the food shortage during the war and provide fresh foods for families, who tended their own garden.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 10. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc10.html

Communication Concerning the Dependents of a Naval Enlistee,  June 18th, 1942 / Transcription

  • This letter to Governor Green is from the wife of a naval Selective Service enlistee who had been called to war, despite the military's reluctance to send fathers to battle. The wife plead for his release to help provide for their children, and argued that he only enlisted to avoid being drafted by the army.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 12. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc12.html

Communication from Hannah A. Woods of the Illinois Association of Colored Women, August 6th, 1942

  • This letter from Hannah A. Woods to Governor Green of Illinois discussed her appointment as a vice-chairman of the Women's Organization of the Illinois State Council of Defense. She also discussed a school she established for impoverished families which was at risk.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 14. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc14.html

Communication from the Chicago Civilian Morale Committee, September 4th, 1942

  • Communication to the Coordinator of All Law Enforcement Agencies in Illinois from the Chicago Civilian Morale Committee regarding correcting rumors in the public, using information provided from the Coordinator.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 15. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/28/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc15.html

This is a V-Home Placard, September 30th, 1942

  • This placard notes that the home it appears on has been approved as following the criteria of the Civil Defense councils. According to the teaching package, Kenney, IL was the first to achieve 100% participation in the nation.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 18. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 12/02/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc18.html

Office of Price Administration Press Release Concerning Rubber Conservation, October 11th, 1942

War Food Communique No. 1, Meat Rationing, October 1942

  • See above Public Health and Safety

Letter from Vannevar Bush to Enrico Fermi, August 19th, 1941 

  • This letter was sent from Vannevar Bush, Director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development for the U.S. Office for Emergency Management, to Enrico Fermi, at that time working for Columbia University in New York City. In this letter, Bush asks Fermi to accept a volunteer appointment as Chairman of the Consultants on Theoretical Aspects Susection of the Uranium Section. Fermi's acceptance officially involves him in what comes to be known as the Manhattan Project.

  • From the Enrico Fermi Collection, University of Chicago Library, Special Collections Research Center. More information can be found at http://fermi.lib.uchicago.edu/fermicollection.htm

Converted Squash Court Under West Stands of Stagg Field 

  • This photograph shows the location of the first nuclear chain reaction. This experiment was performed by Enrico Fermi and his team at the University of Chicago on December 2nd, 1942. Fermi used a squash court under Stagg Field, the university's football stadium. These historic experiments took place while the staff and students unknowingly went about their usual business.

  • From the Enrico Fermi Collection, The University of Chicago Library, Special Collections Research Center. More information can be found at http://fermi.lib.uchicago.edu/fermicollection.htm

Chicago Pile 1 Experiment Sketch #1 / Sketch #2

  • These sketches show close-ups of the set up for the first nuclear chain reaction.

  • From the Enrico Fermi Collection, The University of Chicago Library, Special Collections Research Center. Images apf2-00501 and apf2-00503. http://fermi.lib.uchicago.edu/fermiimages.htm

Photo of One Layer of Nuclear Pile, November 1942 

  • This is the only photograph taken during the construction of the first nuclear reactor.

  • From the Enrico Fermi Collection, The University of Chicago Library, Special Collections Research Center. Image apf2-00502. http://fermi.lib.uchicago.edu/fermiimages.htm

Scale Model of Nuclear Pile Experimental Setup 

  • This photograph shows a scale model which is quite helpful in understanding how the first nuclear reactor was set up in a squash court at the University of Chicago.

  • From the Enrico Fermi Collection, The University of Chicago Library, Special Collections Research Center. Image apf2-00504. http://fermi.liv.uchicago.edu/fermiimages.htm

Mechanic's Suit Description and Illustration, 1942

  • This description of a mechanic's suit details an outfit for women going into the mechanical workforce during World War II. Fashions were meant to be practical, but often challenged traditional gender conventions. The teaching package (see link) describes a Chicago ordinance that needed to be amended to allow for new women's attire.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 20. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/29/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc20.html

Defense News from Illinois State Council of Defense, City Children and Farm Work, February 22nd, 1943

  • This Defense News edition features an article about a program that would introduce children from the city to farms during the summer, as well as a training booklet created by the University of Illinois. Due to the severe shortage of manpower during the war, training and using students to farm assisted production. Illinois was the first state who attempted this effort.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 22. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/29/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc22.html

Communication from the Clark County Director of Civilian Defense Concerning Blackout Violations, August 7th, 1943

  • See above Crime and Punishment section

Women of Illinois Can Help Win the War, Save All Fats and Greases, 1943

  • This poster from the Illinois State Council of Defense promotes the use of extra fats and greases for the war effort. These were used in the production of munitions for the military.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 35. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed 10/29/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc35.html

You Too Are On the Firing Line, Waste Elimination, 1943

  • This poster not only serves to display ways of reducing waste for the war effort, but according to the teaching package (see link), was a promotional effort by Kroger to enhance their public image. A lawsuit had been brought in Illinois against Kroger that same year for overcharging on canned goods, which were regulated by the Office of Price Administration. Kroger was found guilty, and the ruling was upheld by the Illinois and U.S. Supreme Courts.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 29. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 12/02/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc29.html

Communication from the War Relocation Authority Concerning Japanese-Americans Relocated in the Chicago Area, December 6th, 1943

  • This communication addresses the resettlement of Japanese-Americans in the Chicago area. During the war, many Americans of Japanese origin faced prejudice after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. Relocation efforts on the West Coast at the same time placed these people in internment camps.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 31. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 12/02/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc31.html

Resolution of the Polish Roman Catholic Union of America Concerning the Partition of Their Homeland, January 25th, 1944

  • This resolution passed by the Polish Roman Catholic Union of America at a convention in Chicago protests the seizing of Eastern Poland by the Soviet Union, and asks for assistance from President Roosevelt. Chicago has historically been home to a large Polish population.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 37. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed on 10/29/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc37.html

Communication from the Chairman of the Women's Division of the Warren County War Council Concerning Her Service Hours, October 2nd, 1944

  • This communication presents the hours served to the war effort by the Women's Division of the Warren County War Council, including educational and production efforts.

  • Citation: Bailey, Robert E. and Elaine Shemoney Evans. Illinois at War, 1941-1945. Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1994. Document 39. Used by permission of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Accessed 10/29/2016. https://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/teaching_packages/illinois_at_war/doc39.html

Communication from Mrs. Wm. D. Battey Concerning Day-Care

  • See above Philanthropy and Public Aid section