Research Guides: War & Society: World War I

Primary Source Materials

First World War This link opens in a new window
Rich in primary source content from world-class libraries and archives, this collection is an invaluable source for anyone studying and researching the 'Great War.' From personal collections and rare printed material to military files, ephemera and artwork, the First World War highlights the experiences of soldiers, civilians and governments on both sides of the conflict and in multiple theatres of war.
Abbreviation: fww
Vendor: Adam Matthew Digital Ltd
Subjects: History, International Affairs
Type: Government Publications, Historical / Primary Sources, Images, Indexes / Catalogs, Maps, Newspapers and Newswires, Streaming Audio, Streaming Video

Commemorating the Great War
As the largest repository of American World War I records, the National Archives invites you to browse the wealth of records and information documenting the U.S. experience in this conflict, including photographs, documents, audiovisual recordings, educational resources, articles, blog posts, lectures, and events.
American Leaders Speak: Recordings from World War I
The Nation's Forum recordings were made between 1918 and 1920 in an effort to preserve the voices of prominent Americans; in most cases, they are the only surviving recordings of a speaker. The 1918 series was devoted mostly to World War I topics.
Newspaper Pictorials: World War I Rotogravures, 1914 to 1919
During World War I (1914-18) rotogravure sections captured the details and intensity of the fighting, introduced technological innovations to a curious and interested American public, and documented the work and play of the home front. These pictorials were important tools for promoting U.S. propaganda and influenced how readers viewed world events.
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This online collection is drawn from three primary sources: The War of the Nations: Portfolio in Rotogravure Etchings, a volume published by the New York Times shortly after the armistice that compiled selected images from their "Mid-Week Pictorial" supplements of 1914-19; Sunday rotogravure sections from the New York Times for 1914-19; and Sunday rotogravure sections from the New York Tribune for 1916-19.
Posters: World War I Posters
Approximately 1,900 posters created between 1914 and 1920. Most relate directly to the war, but some German posters date from the post-war period and illustrate events such as the rise of Bolshevism and Communism, the 1919 General Assembly election and various plebiscites.
World War I Sheet Music
America's entry into the war came at a time when popular songwriting and the music publishing industry, centered in New York's Tin Pan Alley, was at its height and a new musical form known as "jazz" was emerging. The sheet music collection represents the intersection of this rich output of popular song and the consciousness of a nation at war that was itself emerging, as a major world power.

Veterans' History Project
The Veterans History Project of the American Folklife Center collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war. Includes accounts from WWI to the 21st century wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Stars and Stripes: The American Soldiers' Newspaper of World War I, 1918 to 1919
Includes the complete seventy-one-week run of The Stars and Stripes World War I edition. The Stars and Stripes was published in France by the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) of the United States Army from February 8, 1918, to June 13, 1919.

History Commons This link opens in a new window
Includes U.S. military camp newspapers, much of it written by soldiers for soldiers, covering the experiences of American soldiers during the mobilization period in 1916, in the trenches in 1918 and through the occupation of Germany in 1919.
From the landing page of the website, select COLLECTIONS then choose the AMERICA AND WORLD WAR I collections, available in two parts.
Abbreviation: aacarc
Vendor: Coherent Digital
Subjects: African-American Studies, History, Women's and Gender Studies
Type: Newspapers and Newswires

There are many newspapers that would include coverage of military and domestic issues during times of war. Visit the complete guide to Newspapers available from FSU Libraries to access major US, British, and other important newspapers available digitally and on microfilm.

Newspapers
by Kimberly Windham Last Updated Oct 9, 2024 6389 views this year

United States

United States Army in the World War, 1917-1919 by Center of Military History, U.S. Army
Call Number: Documents General Collection Ground Floor -- D114.8: 1989
Publication Date: 1988-1992
A seventeen-volume compilation of selected American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) records gathered by Army historians during the interwar years.
Volume summary:
v. 1. Organization of the American Expeditionary Forces -- v. 2. Policy-forming documents of the American Expeditionary Forces -- v. 3. Training and use of American units with the British and French -- v. 4-9. Military operations of the American Expeditionary Forces -- v. 10, pts. 1-2. The Armistics Agreement and related documents -- v. 11. American occupation of Germany -- v. 12-15. Reports of the commander-in-chief, AEF, staff sections and services -- v. 16. General orders, GHQ, AEF -- v. 17. Bulletins, GHQ, AEF.

Great Britain

British Documents on Foreign Affairs - Reports & Papers from the Foreign Office Confidential Print
Call Number: FSU STROZIER, Documents General Collection Ground Floor
FSU STROZIER, Documents
D 621.G7 B75 1989, 12 volumes
Volume summary:
v. 1. The Allied and Neutral Powers, diplomacy and war aims, I: August 1914-July 1915 -- v. 2. The Allied and Neutral Powers, diplomacy and war aims, II: June 1915-November 1916 -- v. 3. The Allied and Neutral Powers, diplomacy and war aims, III: January 1917-July 1918 -- v. 4. The Allied and Neutral Powers, diplomacy and war aims, IV: July-November 1918. -- v. 5. Blockade and economic warfare, I: August 1914-July 1915-- v. 6. Blockade and economic warfare, II: July 1915-January 1916 -- v. 7. Blockade and economic warfare, III: January-October 1916 -- v. 8. Blockade and economic warfare, IV: November 1916-November 1918 -- v. 9.The Central Powers, II: August 1914-February 1916 -- v. 10.The Central Powers, III: February 1916-January 1917 -- v. 11.The Central Powers, IV: December 1916-September 1917 -- v. 12.The Central Powers, V: October 1917-November 1918

Germany

Verhandlungen. Stenographische Berichte. by Germany. Reichstag
Call Number: Online
Publication Date: 1873-1922
Collected edition of proceedings issued daily during each legislative session.
Each session's debates are accompanied by supplementary vols. with title Anlagen.

Military Battles and Campaigns: World Wars
Maps showing campaigns of major military conflicts including troop movements, defensive structures and groundworks, roads to and from sites of military engagements, campsites, and local buildings, topography and vegetation. Some of the maps are manuscripts drawn on the field of battle, while others are engraved including some that have manuscript annotations reflecting the history of the battle or campaign. Results filtered to include World Wars I & II.
World War I Detailed Battle Maps - American Forces in Europe
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection.
These are the supplementary folding maps from the book series "Summary of Operations in the World War" published in 1944 by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
Includes links to the full text scans of the books accompanying these maps.

Peace

Peace Handbooks Issued by the Historical Section of the Foreign Office by Great Britain Foreign Office
Call Number: D6 .G65 1973
ISBN: 1330549651
Publication Date: 1973 [reprints of 1920 bound volumes]
First issued as a series of 162 pamphlets, prepared for the information and use of the British delegates to the Paris Peace conference, and titled: Handbooks prepared under the direction of the Historical Section of the Foreign Office. The handbooks (except nos. 24, 32, 49, 72 and 75) were collected and reissued in 25 bound volumes titled Peace handbooks, in 1920.