1. AMERICA ENTERS & CHANGES THE COURSE OF WORLD WAR I
Selective Service Act- because of the need for American soldiers, a draft (or conscription) was approved by Congress through this act in May Under this act, 24 million men were registered and 3 million chosen by lottery to train for combat.
Married men and those with dependents were generally excused from service, so chosen soldiers were primarily between 21 and 23 years old.

2. LEAVING FROM HOME The training period was 9 months, with 17-hour days.
Women weren’t drafted, but served as nurses, secretaries, and telephone operators for the marines, navy, and later the army.
Proportion of African Americans in the army was double their proportion in the general population. Mostly served in non-combat roles, but many fought heroically in certain all-black regiments.

3. THE WAR OVERSEAS
The U.S. focused its manpower and resources on building many ships. The U.S. also proposed a convoy system in which merchant ships would be guarded by circling destroyers and cruisers. The efforts worked, as German u-boat attacks were significantly reduced.
General John J. Pershing commanded the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), and insisted that American soldiers fight separately. This group had fresh energy in comparison to the European soldiers who had been fighting for the last 3 years.

4. THE WAR OVERSEAS (cont’d)
The tactics of the AEF was aggressive, pushing back the Germans’ advancement in France.
New weapons that the American soldiers fought against and with were poison gas, machine guns, tanks, and more sophisticated fighter planes.
Finally, German soldiers began a mutiny and refused to continue fighting. On 11/11/1918, Germany agreed to a cease-fire.
Total number of deaths from the war was about 8.5 million.