2A3: Patriotic Acts of Copper Country Children in the Great War

The Daily Mining Gazette chronicled many interesting and important local acts of domestic patriotism in 1917-18 during the Great War. People of all ages, and from all walks of life contributed to the war effort as our nation prepared for direct military intervention in Europe. Life on the home front in the Copper Country became more challenging, and children were one of the groups that participated in domestic acts of patriotism. The children of the Copper Country showed their willingness to contribute precious time, physical labor, and what money they had to the war effort. School children of all ages participated in a wide variety of activities that helped to raise money for different war funds and liberty bonds. The societies that children were involved in such as the Boy Scouts of America, the Red Cross, and the YMCA went above and beyond in their efforts to help in fundraising efforts across the Copper Country. Fundraising was a highly visible way that children contributed to the war effort, and the Daily Mining Gazette constantly wrote about these efforts. Food production and conservation was an area in which anyone on the home front could “do their bit” and children were no exception. Children’s work at home and in the surrounding area planting and maintaining gardens to lessen the nation’s food burden was praised and deserves attention. Aside from their own gardens, some children spent time helping farmers with their crops and subsequent harvests at a time when the labor pool was shrinking. Women and girls knitted comforts for Navy troops and also helped with tag-day sales. Within this paper, I shall examine the patriotic acts of local children during this tumultuous time in our Nation’s history. I will look into the children’s motives for participating in the fundraising and food conservation efforts to find out what influence adults had in children’s participation. The extent of children’s work with schools and societies during bond drives and other events will be assessed. Gender roles for children at this time will be examined along with information regarding the children’s demographics. What children participated and why may give some insight into ethnic communities who called the Copper Country home in 1917-18. The gap in coverage relating to children and gender will also be addressed in comparison to the overall coverage of women in the war effort. Examining the efforts of local children gives us a glimpse into what life was like on the home front during the Great War.