This poster encouraged Americans to purchase U.S. government bonds, or “Liberty Loans,” to fund the American and Allied war efforts. When the United States entered the war in April 1917, policymakers recognized that they would need to raise enormous sums of money to finance the war. To do so, Congress authorized the Secretary of the Treasury, William Gibbs McAdoo, to sell war bonds to the American public. The federal government issued bonds four times while the United States was involved in the First World War—in April and October 1917 and in April and September 1918—and once more after the war had ended (renamed the Victory Liberty Loan). Together, these five Liberty Loans brought the government roughly $22 billion. In exchange, bond purchasers earned tax-exempt interest, redeemable at some future point. Concerned that these financial benefits alone would not be a sufficient inducement, Secretary of the Treasury McAdoo organized publicity campaigns to persuade Americans to buy the bonds. At the time of each bond issue, McAdoo and the CPI organized Liberty Loan Campaigns, elaborate fundraising drives held in towns and cities throughout the country. In addition to creating posters, they organized parades, pageants, and speeches by notable individuals to convince Americans to buy war bonds. In the end, their marketing efforts paid off—eager Americans oversubscribed each campaign.

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