us government travel posters 1940's

The Extraordinary Story of Iconic American Travel Posters

In the 1930s, at the height of the Great Depression, the New Deal created jobs for more than 8 million Americans with the development of the Works Projects Administration (WPA). In an effort to bring work to struggling artists, the WPA also hired illustrators, painters and other creative workers for special government-funded work as part of what it dubbed the Federal Art Project.

The effort was astonishing in scope: Between 1935 and 1943, some 2 million posters in 35,000 different designs were created in an effort to promote education, theater, health, safety — and travel.

To inspire American tourism, artists created posters showcasing cities, museums, monuments, zoos and other wonders of the American landscape. Arguably the most iconic posters of all, though, touted one of America's greatest treasures: its spectacular national park system. 

Vintage Posters of the National Parks

The majority of the WPA's national park posters are credited to artist C. (Chester) Don Powell, a Kansas man who studied art in Chicago. Unfortunately, World War II cut his project short, leaving just 14 original works, all of which are now collectibles that can fetch thousands of dollars.

Of the 14 posters, 11 originals have been recovered by a former park ranger, Doug Leen, who also works to create posters of additional parks in the same vintage style of the originals.

One poster, of Yosemite, is privately owned. Two posters, of Wind Cave and the Great Smoky Mountains, have been lost — if you find one, Ranger Doug wants to speak to you! 

Grand Teton's Jenny Lake Museum

The first park to get its own poster was Grand Teton National Park. Its poster appropriately depicts towering peaks, while nodding to the park's first ranger station, Jenny Lake Museum.

The log-cabin station opened in the Montana park in the 1930s and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. An original of this poster hangs in the museum.

Grand Canyon National Park

The second completed poster is a rendering of Grand Canyon National Park's Moran Point, a popular spot on the east rim that showcases dazzling views of the canyon and its rivers. 

The Grand Canyon had only been a national park for 19 years when this poster was created. Today, more than 6 million people visit the park annually, making it the second-most-visited in the country.

At the time the posters were created, they were sent to local Chambers of Commerce near the parks to help promote tourism. Only four copies from the original 1938 distribution exist.

Yellowstone National Park

Two posters were created for Yellowstone National Park. One featured a waterfall within the park; the other, pictured here, depicted the park's famous geyser, Old Faithful. There were no more than 100 total Yellowstone posters made, which is why they are so hard to find today. 

Only two originals of this geyser poster remain, including one the Library of Congress bought for a cool $6,000. Although created by Powell, the originals have "EM" initials, assumed to be the initials of the person who made the screening.

Glacier Bay National Monument

Although Glacier National Park was inducted into the park system in 1910, it wasn't until 1925 that President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed Glacier Bay itself a national monument. Just 13 years later, the National Park Service was promoting the park, reached then by steamship and today by Alaskan cruises.

This poster, along with the additional 13 posters of the national parks, were hand-painted and mass-reproduced from paintings using silkscreen printing, which was a new technology in 1936. 

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Smoke billows out from the peak of Mt. Lassen in this poster depicting one of America's lesser-visited national parks. (A shame, as its forests, lakes and — of course — volcanoes are magnificent.)

The original poster of Lassen Volcano in California sold at auction for more than $4,000.

Zion National Park

To reproduce the lost posters, Ranger Doug uncovered black-and-white photography depicting the paintings. Guessing Zion's poster would highlight the park's beautiful sunset-hued colors, he crafted the version showed here. It was 10 years before he found the original, which actually used blue coloring.

Ranger Doug's version of this poster is the more popular of the reproductions purchased today.

Fort Marion National Monument

St. Augustine, Florida's Fort Marion was one of only two parks from the east to get a poster. (The other was Great Smoky Mountains National Park.)

Today, this monument is known as Castillo de San Marcos. It preserves a fort used by the Spanish, the British and then the Spanish again, before it was bought by the United States and used by the army until 1899.

See America

National parks weren't the only American marvels to get the snazzy poster treatment. The United States Travel Bureau also commissioned works that could be displayed in cities to inspire exploration.

This poster was created by artist Alexander Dux, one of more than 5,000 artists employed by the WPA. While not officially part of the national parks project — and even though it promotes America broadly — it actually does showcase a national park as backdrop: Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.

Brooklyn Museum

Before the WAP was established in 1935, New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia had established his own poster project in 1934 to promote tourism to the Big Apple. When the federal project began, LaGuardia's project merged with, and became the largest division of, the WAP's Federal Art Project.

Both the mayor's and FAP's posters were mainly designed for art, music, theater and creative projects, but soon cities and states began using posters to promote other programs as well.

Puerto Rico

Also created for the New York City project was a poster promoting travel to Puerto Rico, as the city was touting destinations that could be reached by plane. New York City wanted more people to visit its airports and take flight.

This illustration was designed by Frank S. Nicholson and features a view of San Juan Harbor from Morro Caste.

Winter in New York

While New York City had the largest poster division in the country, New York State created tourism posters, as well, reminding travelers there was much more to see in the state than the Big Apple. This poster promotes the state's robust skiing scene; New York is home to 43 ski areas , reportedly more than any other state in the U.S.

Through the Federal Art Project, artists were paid $23.50 per week .

Brookfield Zoo

Chicago created a series of posters promoting the Brookfield Zoo, also called the Chicago Zoological Park, just outside of the city. The zoo had opened in 1934, and the city was attempting to promote it to nearby residents. Decades later, the zoo remains a popular Chicago attraction, housing 450 species of animals.

Other posters plugged sites like Buckingham Fountain, then touted as "the world's largest and most beautiful illuminated fountain"; it also remains a standout spot in the Windy City.

Philadelphia Zoo

Pennsylvania created many posters to promote Philadelphia and various tourist destinations, including the Amish Country.

The Philadelphia Zoo, which opened in 1874, was touted in several posters made by the Federal Art Project in Pennsylvania. Each poster featured animals found at the zoo, including a hippo, two herons and this blue elephant. The Philadelphia Zoo remains one of the best in the nation, home to some 1,300 animals.

New York Airports

Opposition within Congress caused the WAP program to end. By 1942, the WPA art projects were handed over to the Defense Department and transformed into the Graphics Section of the War Service Division. Artists created training aids and patriotic posters for the war.

The project officially ended on June 30, 1943.

The End of an Era

Due to the Federal Art Project's eight years of employment, renowned artists such as Jackson Pollock were able to continue to earn a living creatively. 

The program also brought art classes to schools and created more than 100 community art centers and galleries across America, keeping art alive for millions during the Great Depression.

The total investment? Nearly $35 million . (More than $520 million in today's terms!)

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World War II-era Propaganda Posters

Description.

The World War II-era Propaganda Posters is a small collection comprised of posters mass-produced during the years of 1939 to 1945. The collection includes both vintage posters and some modern reproductions of World War II posters.

The posters illustrate the United States government's wartime initiatives that were publicized to American civilians, such as propaganda to persuade the public to purchase war bonds or take on jobs to support the needs of the military. The posters range in size from 9.5 x 12 inches to 24 x 36 inches and include examples of works by artists Norman Rockwell, Joseph Anderson, Stevan Dohanos, Carolyn Moorhead Edmundson, Arthur Fisher, Allen Russell Saalburg, and Georges Schreiber.

The collection has been arranged into four series that reflect the thematic elements of the poster: Series I. "Careless talk" campaign, Series II. Recruitment, Series III. War bonds, and Series IV. Assorted posters. There are two subseries within the Recruitment series that highlight items related to the recruitment of women for various wartime jobs and recruitment posters for the United States Army Air Forces. Series IV. contains assorted posters that fall outside the main themes of the collection but still provide documentation of World War II campaigns, such as fuel shortages and the manufacturing of fighter planes.

Digitized Materials: A representative selection of items have been digitized from this collection.

Please note that materials on TMOF: Digital Collections are presented as historical objects and are unaltered and uncensored. See our Disclaimers and Policies page for more information.

Rights Holder

Bibliographic citation, collection organization.

• Series I - "Careless talk" campaign, 1943
• Series II - Recruitment, circa 1940s
• Series III - War bonds, circa 1940s
• Series IV - Assorted posters, circa 1940s

Collection Items

You can have silver wings.

Americans suffer when careless talk kills!

Your war bonds are a stake in the future

Women! / They can't do any more -- but you can / Join the WAC

Bits of careless talk are pieced together by the enemy

Fuel fights! / Save your share

United / The United Nations fight for freedom

In 1942 America will build 60,000 war planes…

America calling / Take your place in Civilian Defense

"Never was so much owed by so many to so few"

Category : World War II posters from the United States

Subcategories.

This category has the following 44 subcategories, out of 44 total.

• World War II aviation posters ‎ (1 C, 149 F)
• 1942 World War II posters of the United States ‎ (5 C, 84 F)
• 1943 World War II posters of the United States ‎ (3 C, 62 F)
• 1944 World War II posters of the United States ‎ (5 C, 66 F)
• 1945 World War II posters of the United States ‎ (2 C, 22 F)
• Appreciate America posters ‎ (6 F)
• Benny the Bungler ‎ (5 F)
• Blueprint of Victory ‎ (22 F)
• World War II war bond posters from the United States ‎ (8 C, 335 F)
• Don't Fall for Enemy Propaganda ‎ (4 F)
• World War II farm posters from the United States ‎ (68 F)
• World War II food and nutrition posters from the United States ‎ (1 C, 124 F)
• World War II posters about health from the United States ‎ (3 C, 130 F)
• World War II posters about innovation from the United States ‎ (156 F)
• Joe Dope ‎ (44 F)
• Newsmaps ‎ (45 F)
• Office of War Information illustrations by Charles Alston ‎ (29 F)
• Pearl Harbor attack posters ‎ (36 F)
• World War II production posters from the United States ‎ (10 C, 384 F)
• World War II anti-German propaganda posters from the United States ‎ (168 F)
• World War II anti-Japanese propaganda posters from the United States ‎ (2 C, 188 F)
• World War II rationing posters from the United States ‎ (45 F)
• World War II recruitment posters from the United States ‎ (2 C, 271 F)
• World War II safety posters from the United States ‎ (5 C, 262 F)
• World War II posters about secrecy from the United States ‎ (1 C, 182 F)
• World War II transportation posters from the United States ‎ (2 C, 84 F)
• World War II posters about tools from the United States ‎ (74 F)
• The United Nations Fight for Freedom posters ‎ (13 F)
• United Nations Facts ‎ (11 F)
• US National Archives series: Original Artwork for World War II Posters, 1942 - 1945 ‎ (2 F)
• US National Archives series: World War II Posters, compiled 1942 - 1945 ‎ (5643 F)
• World War II posters about waste avoidance from the United States ‎ (3 C, 193 F)
• Women in World War II posters from the United States ‎ (3 C, 276 F)
• World War II absenteeism posters from the United States ‎ (160 F)
• World War II home front in the United States ‎ (61 C, 580 F)
• World War II military mail ‎ (5 C, 54 F)
• World War II posters about fire safety from the United States ‎ (1 C, 76 F)
• World War II posters about sabotage from the United States ‎ (1 C, 30 F)
• World War II salvage posters from the United States ‎ (113 F)
• World War II war stamps posters from the United States ‎ (46 F)
• World War II warning posters from the United States ‎ (9 F)
• WPA civilian defense posters ‎ (54 F)
• WW II camouflage posters from the United States ‎ (13 F)
• WW II camouflage United States ‎ (2 C, 21 F)

Media in category "World War II posters from the United States"

The following 200 files are in this category, out of 1,330 total.

• World War II home front in the United States
• World War II posters
• United States in World War II
• Propaganda posters of the United States
• 1940s posters of the United States
• United States Office of War Information
• Uses of Wikidata Infobox
• Uses of Wikidata Infobox with no image
• Uses of Wikidata Infobox with no instance of

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Vintage posters of America's national parks – in pictures

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A collection of posters created to promote tourism to the national parks is part of the creative legacy of the New Deal developed by Franklin D Roosevelt. Between 1938 and 1941, the Works Progress Administration and its Federal Arts Project designed a series of artworks promoting, and inspired by, the landscapes and wildlife of the parks. The collection is housed in the Library of Congress

• ‘We need to preserve this beauty’: your memories of US national parks

Sarah Gilbert

Fri 26 Aug 2016 13.19 BST Last modified on Fri 14 Jul 2017 19.49 BST

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• National parks at 100

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40 Early American War and Health Posters

Quirky - and sometimes harrowing - poster art from the mid 1930s to the early 1940s.

Before WebMD and push notifications, these posters communicated everything from children's healthcare to war time safety.

The Forgotten History of Those Iconic National Parks Posters

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, we compiled some of the classic National Parks posters from the early 1930s and 40s, and the modern posters created in their honor.

The Works Projects Administration (WPA), originally the Works Progress Administration, was the largest and most ambitious agency in FDR's New Deal. The WPA appropriated 6.7 percent of the country's GDP in 1935—$4.9 billion—to hire millions of unemployed people for public works projects. WPA workers constructed buildings. They built roads and bridges across the nation. The agency also became a patron of the arts, hiring writers, musicians, painters, actors and directors for large scale artistic productions and programs.

And they made posters. Lots of posters.

From 1935 to 1943, an estimated 1,400 National Parks posters were printed to celebrate the formation of the NPS back in 1916—100 years ago. Today, just 41 posters are accounted for, and two of the original 14 designs—Wind Cave and Great Smoky Mountain—have been lost completely, existing now only as black-and-white photos of the original posters.

"These posters had disappeared into history," says Doug Leen, better known as Ranger Doug , a former park ranger of seven years at Grand Teton, a nature photographer, a silkscreen artist, and the self-styled 'Ranger of the Lost Art.' "For 50 years they were gone, totally gone."

For the small collection of authentic WPA posters we do have, America owes a debt to people like Ranger Doug who have spent years tracking them down and preserving them. Most of the classic National Parks posters you've seen were probably imitations created by Doug to mimic the originals or original works he himself created for the parks that didn't get WPA posters before World War II, when the posters faded out of import and disappeared into boxes and desk drawers.

"In 1971, I found an original," says Ranger Doug. "I fished one of Grand Teton out of a pickup truck that was going to the dump."

Of the 41 originals that still exist, some are badly damaged or ripped. Eight of the known 13 WPA posters of Bandelier were cut up and used as file dividers in an NPS office. Some are tucked away in private collections—sold to mysterious buyers whose identities auction houses will not divulge, as is the case with the one known original WPA poster of Yosemite. (The poster sold for $4,600 in 2006, and it would easily fetch more than double that price now.)

"I have a collection of six of these," Ranger Doug says, referring to original WPA prints. "It's the largest collection. The Library of Congress has five. The rest are scattered within the National Parks, and they're in private hands. Yosemite is in private hands—it's unknown by anyone else except the owner."

There are almost certainly more of these treasured posters buried in NPS archives or slowly fading away in cabin attics, waiting to be discovered. Ranger Doug is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who can supply him with an original copy of Wind Cave National Park or Great Smokey Mountains, the two missing from the 14 original designs, or a Yosemite original that's not stuck in someone's private collection. After he uses them for reproduction work, he plans to donate the posters to the Library of Congress, as he has done with others in the past.

Ranger Doug's own posters are so similar to the WPA's originals that he has run into copyright issues when people use his images for commercial goods like mugs and t-shirts, mistaking Doug's designs for 80-year-old images in the public domain. In fact, only the posters on the Library of Congress's website are in the public domain, and those designs account for less than half of the original designs.

The Ranger of the Lost Art isn't the only one who makes WPA-style National Parks posters—Robert B. Decker also creates his own designs —but Ranger Doug is the only one who meticulously imitates the silkscreening process used in the 1930s and 40s.

"In the silkscreen form, they are vibrant," Ranger Doug says. "A lot of people are printing these on little on-demand printers now. Printers have become so cheap, these giclée printers and their ink jets and whatnot, but you know, in a couple years they fade and they look horrible and people send them back to me to figure out where they went wrong."

Doug's recreations and imitations have become so iconic in their own right, that NASA has commissioned a series of space tourism posters , really in Ranger Doug's style more so than the original WPA prints.

And now, to celebrate the centennial of the National Park Service, here are all the WPA National Park and Monument posters in the public domain, as well as Ranger Doug's contemporary creations, which you can purchase here . Enjoy.

Jay Bennett is the associate editor of PopularMechanics.com. He has also written for Smithsonian, Popular Science and Outside Magazine. 

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• Series 1: Office of War Information Posters, 1942-1943
• Series 2: United States War Bonds & Stamps, 1942-1945
• Series 3: War Production, 1941-1944
• Series 4: Civilian Experience, 1941-1945
• Series 5: U.S. Military, 1941-1944
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• Series 7: War Maps, 1942-1945

World War II Poster Collection, 1941-1945

World War II, the largest-scale conflict in human history, was fought between the Axis Powers (Germany, Japan, and Italy) and the Allied Forces (the British Commonwealth, France, the Soviet Union, the United States, and others) between 1939 and 1945. World War II began in September 1939 with Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland and escalated as European powers joined the conflict. On December 7, 1941, Japan launched an attack on the U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. In response, the United States declared war on the Axis powers and began campaigns in Europe and the Pacific. Shortly thereafter, the United States, Britain, the Soviet Union, China, and their allies signed the Atlantic Charter, uniting together against the Axis. Between 1942 and 1945, the fighting expanded to encompass much of Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Italy surrendered in 1943, Germany in May 1945, and Japan in August 1945. More than 60 million people died in World War II, including upwards of 40 million civilians as a result of the Nazi campaign against ethnic Jews and other targeted groups, military attacks on civilian populations in Europe, the United States' use of nuclear weapons against Japan, and war-related famine and disease.

America's involvement in World War II required immediate growth of the United States' armed forces, the conversion of peacetime industrial manufacturing to military needs, and the expansion of domestic agriculture to supply the United States' allies with food. Through a series of radio, film, and print media campaigns, the U.S. government asked young men to enlist in unprecedented numbers, encouraged women to join the workforce, and called upon citizens to enact wartime austerity measures, participate in war-related charitable work, and ultimately contribute nearly $200 billion to the war effort via goverment-issued bonds.

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