World War II Home Front: Shipbuilding in America (1939-1945)
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On December 29, 1940, a concerned but hopeful President Franklin D. Roosevelt took to the airwaves at 9:30 pm Eastern Time to address an increasingly restless nation on the sobering topic of war mobilization. Across the Atlantic, Britain was engaged in a death struggle with Hitler’s Germany, which had already laid claim to vast regions of Europe. For over 36 minutes, Roosevelt spoke to his captive audience about the importance of American engagement in the conflict. To preserve universal freedom, the president urged, “we must have more ships, more guns, more planes—more of everything. We must be the great arsenal of democracy.” His words captured the spirit of the early 1940s, when American society rapidly adapted to meet wartime demands, defining an era marked by collective industrial and military efforts. The idea of an "Arsenal of Democracy" soon became comparable with the era’s character, symbolizing the partnership of government, industry, and labor that focused the nation's vast productive capacity of ships on aiding the Allies and defending democratic values. Even before entering the war a year later, this unprecedented mobilization laid the foundation for the United States’ eventual victory.
Publication Year
2024
Disciplines
Public History | United States History
Faculty Mentor
Aaron Richardson