World War I Sacrifices in Clay County

County newspapers played a big role in preparing citizens for the sacrifices needed to fight World War I and to sustain support for the war. Neutrality had been a strong political force keeping the U. S. out of the European war. Wilson ran for re-election largely on the slogan, "He Kept Us out of War!"

The Federal Food Administration imposed price controls on many products to prevent businesses from ripping off consumers as the war made many commodities and other products scarce and subject to sharp inflation.

Nebraska Senator Gilbert Hitchcock made this pitch for buying was stamps to his niece in Omaha:

"A Nickel a Day wins the War" might be the point of this pitch.

The U. S. time in WWI was relatively short so the sacrifices of Americans paled before the experiences of Europeans.