WWII Patriotic Poster, Historic U.S.A. American Patriotism Symbols/United States Treasury War Bond Sales Poster, Fire Away! Buy Extra Bonds (memory of U.S.S. Dorado); the official poster design for the Fifth War Loan
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U.S. Treasury Department War Bond Sales Poster Background: This U.S. Treasury bond sales poster, the official poster design for the Fifth War Loan came from a series of paintings from 1943 that were a collaborator of the Missouri born artist World War 1 Navy Veteran Thomas Hart Benton with the American patriotic immigrant from Belgium Georges Schreiber created for Abbott Laboratories Collection of Submarine Paintings, a project largely executed aboard the American submarine Dorado, that was later lost in action with all hands.
More submarine artworks by Georges Schreiber and Thomas Hart Benton
Marketing and selling U.S. Government Bonds to finance the United States of Americas involvement in WWII: In 1940 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union had already overrun and divided up Poland, Japan was making progress towards conquering China, Nazi Germany had alarmed the world with successful military actions against Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands and France the United States began marketing "defense bonds" to discreetly help provide military finance for war preparations. The U.S. treasury made these defense bonds affordable to anyone, they were sold for as little as $18.75 and matured in ten years, at which time the United States government paid the bondholder $25. Bonds in larger denominations from $50 to $1000 were also available; for those that found it difficult to purchase an entire bond at once, 10 cent savings stamps could be purchased and collected in Treasury approved stamp albums until the recipient had accumulated enough stamps for a bond purchase. The name defense bonds was eventually changed to War Bonds after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December, 1941, which resulted in the United States entering the war. The bond posters in this collection employed magnificent contemporary art with powerful text exhortations to buy war bonds accompanied with appeals to patriotism and conscience to successfully help sell the bonds. Also bond sales rallies were held throughout the country with famous celebrities, usually Hollywood film stars, to enhance the bond advertising effectiveness. The posters in this collection like the one shown on this page "Fire away! Buy extra bonds; poster in memory of U.S.S. Dorado." were powerful and successful marketing tools to aid in the sale of war bonds and over the course of the world war two 85 million Americans purchased bonds totaling approximately $185.7 billion.
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