The War's Pull

Americans read all about the horrible fighting in the Great War in 1914.

- Barbara Brooks Simons

Their location safely on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, however, allowed them to keep their distance from Europe’s problems.

Although most Americans wanted to stay out of Europe’s war, the United States was emerging as a world power in the 1900s by involving itself in the affairs of its neighbors in the Western Hemisphere. It had started to influence politics and protect U.S. business interests in nearby Central America, sending in troops when necessary.

But in April 1915, President Woodrow Wilson said, “Our whole duty, for the present at any rate, is summed up in this motto: ‘America first.’” The United States officially refused to take sides in the war. But many Americans favored one side or the other. And American businesses continued to sell and ship much-needed products to their prewar friends, Britain and France.

Early in the war, the Germans had introduced a frightening new weapon. They called it an Unterseeboot (“undersea boat,” shortened to “U-boat” and also known as a “submarine”). At first, U-boats targeted British navy ships, since Great Britain had set up a naval blockade to limit Germany’s access to food and supplies. Then Germany announced in 1915 that it would start attacking merchant ships that entered its war zone. Merchant ships carried both passengers and cargo.