A. M. Riegelman publicity copy book

Collection

Identifier: MSS 0606

Staff Only

Scope and Content Note

This collection contains a copybook produced by the publicity firm A. M. Riegelman for the 1918 "Fight to Conserve, Conserve to Fight" campaign. The Conservation and Reclamation Company implemented the campaign at Camp Dodge, Iowa, to encourage soldiers to conserve military supplies and equipment.

The publicity copybook in this collection contains the materials relating to the Conservation and Reclamation Company’s efforts during World War I to encourage soldiers at Camp Dodge, Iowa to conserve military supplies and equipment. The conservation themes of the campaign focus on minimization of waste in general and conservation of clothing, shoes, coal, light, and water. Food conservation was not an issue because of the strict military food rationing policies already in place at Camp Dodge.

The copybook details the process of developing a successful publicity campaign. Included are outlines for research plans, a diagram of the chain of command in the Conservation and Reclamation Company, letters from the Camp Dodge Quartermaster regarding various stages of the campaign, proofs of propaganda posters directed at military personnel, and a poem by an enlisted man about the importance of conservation for the war effort. The illustration and poster proofs in the copybook include some posters of general information on conservation and how it would help to win the war. Many of these posters include illustrations referencing the defeat of Germany through conservation efforts. The remaining posters include information on how to care for shoes and how to reclaim materials that could be reused, such as tin and lead. Also included are color proofs of billboard illustrations dealing with conservation and black and white designs for motion picture slides.

Dates

Creation: 1918

Creator

Riegelman, A. M. (Organization)

Language of Materials

Materials entirely in English.

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce isrequired from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections Department, University of Delaware Library, https://library.udel.edu/static/purl.php?askspec

Historical Note

After the United States entered World War I in 1917, the Army created the Conservation and Reclamation Division as part of the office of the Quartermaster General. The Division took active efforts in conservation of materials and oversaw publicity for their efforts.

Each camp quartermaster was assigned a staff to conserve and reuse military supplies such as food and clothing. Apart from their duties to mend clothing and shoes and recycle raw materials such as tin and lead from discarded food cans, the staff of the Conservation and Reclamation Division created publicity campaigns. Like the campaign at Camp Dodge, these programs educated soldiers on how to make their military issued clothing, shoes and other supplies last longer as well as how to properly reuse items that had worn out their original intended use.

A. M. Riegelman was a publicity and advertising firm based in Kansas City, Missouri, during the first half of the 20th century. The firm was in large part involved in the development and execution of a 1918 publicity campaign designed for the Conservation and Reclamation Company at the military base in Camp Dodge, Iowa.

Historical information derived from the collection. War Department. Annual Reports, 1918. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1919.

Extent

1 volume

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection contains the 1918 Conservation and Reclamation publicity campaign copybook of advertising firm A. M. Riegelman. The campaign ran at Camp Dodge, Iowa.