WPA Posters

World War I Posters

Illustrated by C.W. Anderson between 1914 and 1918 to encourage women to join the Red Cross. The artist was hired by the American Red Cross to design and illustrate this poster of a nurse with her arm raised.

Illustrated by Maginel Wright Barney this poster was to call citizens to join the United States School Garden Army, as shown with Uncle Sam leading a group of children with gardening tools.

World War II Posters

This World War II poster was illustrated by Homer Ansley and published by the California WPA Art Program from 1941-1943. Born in Medical Lake, Washington, Ansley studied at both the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco and the Art Students League in New York City. Aimed to remind citizens to not talk carelessly during the war, the message of this poster, clearly shown above, was to let the military do the talking.

Targeted to sell war bonds, this poster was created between 1941 and 1943 by the WPA War Services of Louisana. Illustrated by John McCrady, the poster shows the dedication of soldiers, and how they needed war stamps and war bonds to support their fighting. McCrady was born in 1911 in Mississippi, and he studied at the University of Mississippi, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Art Students League of New York.

This WPA poster was aimed to warn citizens about what they said and reminded them that everything they said could affect the war effort. It was illustrated by Al Doria in 1943, and he was hired by the WPA War Service of Lousiana.

Health and Public Safety Posters

 Designed by Isadore Posoff in 1937, this poster is aimed to encourage citizens to avoid jaywalking and stopping the flow of traffic. It also shows the dangers and fines one can face if he or she jaywalks, as indicated by the police officer in the background.

This poster, warning about the dangers of fireworks, shows a boy with a bandage over his right eye after a firework accident. It was created in 1936 or 1937 by the NYC WPA, and it was designed and illustrated by artist Vera Bock.

Under the Federal Art Project, this poster, warning about the dangers of drinking and driving, was designed in 1937 by artist Robert Lachenmann. It cautioned people about the possibly deadly affects of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Travel & Tourism

Designed to promote tourism to the nation's national parks, this poster focuses on how America's national parks preserve wildlife, by showing two sheep on a boulder. It was designed and illustrated by J. Hirt in 1939 for the WPA Federal Art Project.

Advertising travel and tourism to rural Pennsylvania, this poster, illustrated by Katherine Milhous (1894-1977) was created in 1936 for the WPA Pennsylvania Art Project. Milhous was born and raised in the Philadelphia/South Jersey region. In 1951, she won the Caldecott Medal for her illustrations in a picture book.This was a unique poster because it promoted tourism to an area away from the main cities in Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

Hired by the Pennsylvania WPA Federal Art Project, Philadelphia artist Hugh Stevenson (1910-1956) created this poster encouraging visits to aquariums to see the sea life.

Jerome Henry Rothstein (1917-2008) created this poster in 1939 for the WPA Federal Art Project. The poster advertises tourism to the landscape of Montana, including an Indian encampment located near a lake. Rothstein was one of the last surviving WPA artists before he passed away in July 2008.