Poster, Cleveland: Many Peoples One Language

Poster, Cleveland: Many Peoples One Language

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Description
Waves of non–English–speaking European immigrants flooded the cities of industrial America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Local governments and civic groups sought to encourage immigrants to learn to speak, read, and write English. This 1917 poster from the Americanization Committee of the Cleveland Board of Education was posted in schools in an attempt to reach immigrant parents through their children.
An appeal to attend free evening English classes appears on this poster in six languages : Italian, Hungarian, Slovenian, Polish, Yiddish, and English. Cleveland's factories, steel mills, port facilities, and assembly plants teemed with the new working–class arrivals from central and eastern Europe. On the eve of the American entry into World War I, nationalistic passions were rising and new immigrants were especially encouraged to "become American" by learning English and preparing for American citizenship.
The 29" x 43" poster is a J. H. Donahey publication printed by the Artcraft Company of Cleveland, Ohio.
Location
Currently not on view
Object Name
poster
print
Date made
1917
referenced
Cleveland Board of Education
graphic artist
Artcraft Company
maker
Donahey, James Harrison
Place Made
United States: Ohio, Cleveland
Physical Description
paper (overall material)
ink (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 106.4 cm x 70 cm; 41 7/8 in x 27 9/16 in
ID Number
1986.0799.01
accession number
1986.0799
catalog number
1986.0799.01
See more items in
Work and Industry: Graphic Arts
Cultures & Communities
Communications
Data Source
National Museum of American History
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