Figure 1.-- This poster read, "Helping Hoover in our U.S. school garden". Herbert Hoover was the leading figure in the World War I food relief effort. President Wilson appointed Herbert Hoover because of his role in Belgian Relief to lead the United States Food Administration (1917). This poster was printed after the War in 1919. America at the time was feeding war devestated Europe and thus it was important to produce as much food as possible. Source: U.S. School Garden Army, Bureau of Education, Department of Interior.

A range of private and government efforts addressed the food issue. They all worked with the U.S. Food Administration (USFA). One of the best known is the Woman's Land Army (WLA). It was initially called the Women's Land Army of America because it was modeled on the British Woman's Land Army. Its purpose was to replace the men drafted for military service. Some called them the Farmerettes. The WLA was organized in 42 states (1917-19). More than 20,000 young women participated. [Weiss] It was a voluntary group and a surprising social class distribution. The WLA girls were not for the most part working-class girls or from farm communities. Many of the volunteers were city girls, in many cases recent college graduates grduates. The various units were associated with colleges. They became tied up in the progressive and sfregette movements. Thus they were received the same wages paid to male farm workers and there was a strict 8-hour workday. The WLA girls became wartime icons, comparable to World War II's Rosie the Riveter. The program was somewhat controversial because women working outside the home was still traeted some suspion, especiall rough outdoor work. Opposition to the WLA program came from Nativists and President Wilson's political appointments. Some questioned women's physical strength and ability to carry out necessary duties and the lng-term effect on their health. The Progressives strongly supported the program, including former-president Theodore Roosevelt. The program was most popular in the West and Northeast. Other groups had active food prirams and suported the WL, incluing the Woman's National Farm and Garden Association (WNFGA), the Temple University Ambler staff, the State Council of Defense of some states, the Garden Club of America, and the YMCA. Other efforts which received government support included the U.S School Garden Army and the National War Garden Commission (NWGC). The NWGC estimates that $135 million of produce was grown on new gardens appearing across the country. [Baron] Children played an important role in this effort. The Boy Scouts and other youth groups helped organize farm labor activities. They were also involved in the Victory Garden effort.

Woman's Land Army of America (WLA)

One of the best known voluntary food production effort was the the Woman's Land Army (WLA). It was initially called the Women's Land Army of America because it was modeled on the British Woman's Land Army. Its purpose was to replace the men drafted for military service. Some called them the Farmerettes. The WLA was organized in 42 states (1917-19). More than 20,000 young women participated. [Weiss] It was a voluntary group and a surprising social class distribution. The WLA girls were not for the most part working-class girls or from farm communities. Many of the volunteers were city girls, in many cases recent college graduates graduates. The various units were associated with colleges. They became tied up in the progressive and Suffragette movements. Thus they were received the same wages paid to male farm workers and there was a strict 8-hour workday. The WLA girls became wartime icons, comparable to World War II's Rosie the Riveter. The program was somewhat controversial because women working outside the home was still traeted some suspion, especiall rough outdoor work. Opposition to the WLA program came from Nativists and President Wilson's political appointments. Some questioned women's physical strength and ability to carry out necessary duties and the lng-term effect on their health. The Progressives strongly supported the program, including former-president Theodore Roosevelt. The program was most popular in the West and Northeast. Other groups had active food programs and suported the WLA, incluing the Woman's National Farm and Garden Association (WNFGA), the Temple University Ambler staff, the State Council of Defense of some states, the Garden Club of America, and the YMCA.

U.S School Garden Army (USCGA)

Another American food related effort was the U.S School Garden Army (USSGA). It was lauched to promote gardening among school children when the United States entered World War I (1917). At the time there was no Department of Education. There was the small Bureau of Education (BOE) within the Department of the Interior. The BOE obtained funding from the War Department for a nation-wide school gardening program--the USSGA. The idea was that encourging school children to garden could help increase local food production and helped to prevent prevent shortages as well as boosting morale on the home front. President Wilson personally promoted the effort, writing "� every boy and girl who really sees what the home garden may mean will, I am sure, enter into the purpose with high spirits � the movement to establish gardens � and to have children work in them is just as real and patriotic an effort as the building of ships or the firing of cannon.� There was concern ovr a possible food crisis. Producing nore food locally could help prevent this as well as release more of the existing production for the war effort. The War Deparment was willing to fund the USSGA as food was now an issue of national security. American kids were up to the challenge. Several million children proudly enlisting as 'Soldiers of the Soil'. One source estimates that some 6 million school children were involved. [Findlay] Schools all over the country got into the business of growing vegetables. The motto of the USCGA was, "A garden for every child, every child in a garden." We are unsure how much food was actully producd. The decentrakized nature of the effort ment that data was difficult to collect. It was also an early step in Federal involvement with education, a state and local probince. It was one of the first BOE attempts to create a national curriculumy. To support the program, the BOE produced a series of documents and destributed them to the schools. There were manuals and guides for the schools as well as circulars aimed at home gardening. The target audience was urban and suburban children ages 9 through 15 years old and their teachers. Hom gardening was still very commonn in rural areas. The subjects covered growing vegetables from seed, growing flowers, building hotbeds and coldframes, organic matter and soil health, regional guides and others.

National War Garden Commission (NWGC)

The National War Garden Commission (NWGC) was another impoertant food program. The NWGC estimates that $135 million of produce was grown on new gardens appearing across the country. [Baron] Children played an important role in this effort.

Boy Scouts

The Boy Scouts nd other youth groups helped organize farm labor activities. They were also involved in the Victory Garden effort. American Scouting was only 5 years old when the War broke out in Europe and still less than 10 yearsold wgen America entered the War. It provd enormously popular and grew rapidly. The Scouts particpated in an number of efforts to support the War effort.

Sources

Brron, Leonard. "Little Farms for Little Folks" (1918).

Findlay, Hugh. "The School Garden Army 6,000,000 strong, Independent), v. 94 (May 4, 1918), p. 211.

Mullendore, William C. History of the United States Food Administration, 1917-19 (1921).

Weiss, Elaine F. Fruits of Victory: The Woman's Land Army of America in the Great War.

Created: 2:57 AM 12/6/2015
Last updated: 5:46 PM 2/24/2018