From World War I Battles to America’s 1930s Isolationism
About This Footage
Reel 3 of War Comes to America (1945) traces America’s path from the aftermath of World War I to the mounting crises of the 1930s. The reel begins with WWI trench fighting, artillery fire, tanks, and aircraft, before shifting to jubilant Armistice Day celebrations in 1918 and naval disarmament under treaty obligations. The narrative then turns to the Great Depression, with stark images of bread lines, unemployment, and Dust Bowl migrants leaving their homes in search of survival. Global tensions rise as Japan seizes Manchuria in 1931, Hitler comes to power in 1933, and Nazi rallies fill Nuremberg with torchlight processions. Mussolini’s 1935 invasion of Ethiopia and the bombing of Spanish cities during the Spanish Civil War further signal the spread of fascist aggression. The reel concludes with a Gallup poll showing most Americans opposed to involvement in another European war, reflecting the isolationist mood on the eve of World War II.