The Great War Comes to Wisconsin : Sacrifice, Patriotism, and Free Speech in a Time of Crisis

__The Great War Comes to Wisconsin__ examines Wisconsin's response to World War I, the first "total war" of the twentieth century, a war so large that it engaged virtually everyone.Instead of a comprehensive history of the battlefield, this book captures the homefront experience: the political debates over war policy, the worry over loved ones fighting overseas, the countless everyday sacrifices, and the impact of a wartime hysteria that drove dissent underground. It also includes the voices of soldiers from Wisconsin's famed 32nd Division, through extensively quoted letters and newspaper accounts. Immerse yourself in the Wisconsin experience during World War I—a conflict that demonstrated America's great capacity for sacrifice and generosity, but also for prejudice, intolerance, and injustice. The Great War Comes to Wisconsin examines Wisconsin's response to World War I, the first "total war" of the twentieth century, a war so large that it engaged virtually everyone. Instead of a comprehensive history of the battlefield, this book captures the homefront experience: the political debates over war policy, the worry over loved ones fighting overseas, the countless everyday sacrifices, and the impact of a wartime hysteria that drove dissent underground. It also includes the voices of soldiers from Wisconsin's famed 32nd Division, through extensively quoted letters and newspaper accounts. Immerse yourself in the Wisconsin experience during World War I—a conflict that demonstrated America's great capacity for sacrifice and generosity, but also for prejudice, intolerance, and injustice. "Wisconsin responded to the nation's entry into World War I with loyalty and patriotic fervor. Wisconsinites of all ages and backgrounds made sacrifices, lost loved ones, endured shortages, bought war bonds, grew vegetables in victory gardens, volunteered for the Red Cross, and went to work in war factories. While Wisconsinites supported the war effort in ways too numerous to count, they also debated the wisdom of war, the necessity of conscription, how to fund the war, and the constitutionality of civil liberty restrictions."-- Provided by publisher