US and World War I

On April 6, 1917, the United States declared war on Germany, thus entering the World War I. The document below, courtesy of the Library of Congress, American Time Capsule: Three Centuries of Broadsides and Other Printed Ephemera digital collection, shows flags of the nations at war with Germany or her allies as of June 22, 1917, with the United States flag in the middle.

The flags of the nations at war with Germany or her allies. Corrected to June 22, 1917

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Balloon

On January 9, 1793, the first balloon was flied in the United States. Over 70 years later, in 1865, balloons were first brought into the U.S. Army by the Signal Corps. This photograph, courtesy of Lake County Discovery Museum’s collection shows a military observation balloon which belongs to the Ohio National Guard and is used by the Field Artillery at El Paso, Texas, in 1917.

Military Observation Baloon (1917)

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International Red Cross and Red Crescent Day

May 8th is celebrated worldwide as an International Red Cross and Red Crescent Day. This is also a birthday of International Red Cross and Red Crescent founder, Henry Dunant (1828-1910). The American Red Cross was founded on May 21, 1881.
The poster below courtesy of University of Minnesota, “A Summons to Comradeship”: World War I and II Posters and Postcards Collection (learn more about this digital collection from Opening History Aggregation).

Red Cross poster 'Give all you can : Red Cross and St. John'

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