Conscientious Objectors in WWI

When I was first assigned the topic of conscientious objectors, I was both worried and excited. I was worried because I feared there would not be a lot of information on the subject. I was excited because I would be able to learn about something new. So, after some intensive research, this is what I came up with!

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A conscientious objector is "a person who, on the grounds of conscience, resists the authority of the state to compel military service" ( Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 1). I found that quote here. There were several types of conscientious objectors. Some were pacifists who did not agree with the war, some were politicians who thought that Germany was not the enemy, others were in religious groups that believed the war was against their religious beliefs. These religions included the Quakers and Jehovah Witnesses. I found that information at this website. Conscientious objectors were known by others as conscies or CO's. I also found that here.

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Lord Roberts, the British Army Commander in South Africa had this to say about conscientious objectors "compulsory service, I believe, as distasteful to the nation as it is incompatible with the conditions of an Army like ours, which has such a large proportion of its units for foreign service. I hold moreover, that the man who voluntarily serves his country is more to be relied upon as a good fighting soldier than is he who is compelled to bear arms." I found that quote here. I found this quote to be interesting because it came straight from an army official and gives his thoughts on objectors against the war.

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Both the United States and Great Britain had plans for the conscientious objectors. The objectors could either work in noncombatant military service, nonmilitary activity that aided the war effort, or activity that was considered important to society. However, pacifists that were not recognized by the government were treated worse. About 5,000 conscientious objectors were put into jail in the US 1940-45. I found that information here.

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There was an organization called the No-Conscription Fellowship .This organization was made up of the Socialist Labor Party and some Quakers. The leaders of this group were charged under the Defense of the Realm Act and were fined for their actions. The members that did not pay the fine were sent to jail. I learned about the No-Conscription Fellowship here.

Overall, I had an enjoyable experience researching conscientious objectors in WWI. I did not realize the number of people all around the world that were against the fighting.

WWI Archive Research

For my research of the WWI Archive, I read the original copy of Dulce et Decorum Est, written by Wilfred Owen. The poem is a description of the author, a soldier in WWI, being attacked by mustard gas. I like this poem particularly because of the author's vivid description of the attack. This is also interesting because since it is the original copy, the reader can see the author's thoughts as he wrote the poem. I found this here.

Postcard Research Citations

I found information here.

I found my pictures here, here, here, here, here, here.

Great White Fleet Research

So far in my research of the Great White Fleet I have read and learned many new things. I learned that the Great White Fleet was headed by President Teddy Roosevelt. He sent the fleet in December of 1907 because he wanted to remind the Japanese of the power the United States possessed. The trip around the world took 14 months and 14.000 sailors. I learned all of this here.

Research Review

In my review of my classmates' research I learned about the Black Sox Scandal, the development of architecture, and the importance of electricity in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Baseball in the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries

Before the late 19th Century, people in America spent so much time working that there was not much time for them to spend time doing leisurely activities. But in the late 19th Century, people started working less, so people had to find things to do in their spare time.
 
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"Among the responses to the search for public forms of leisure was the rise of organized spectator sports, and especially baseball" (Brinkley 507). Baseball was a way for Americans to enjoy themselves and be healthy and have fun doing it. "A game much like base ball known as "rounders" and derived from cricket, had enjoyed limited popularity in Great Britain in the early nineteenth century."

However, they are reports of people playing a form of baseball as early as the expedition of Lewis and Clark. "Revolutionary War soldiers played ball at Valley Forge. Slave children played in the South, sometimes using a tree limb for a bat and a walnut wrapped in rags for a ball. On their way from crossing the continent, Meriweather Lewis and William Clark tried to teach the Nez Percé Indians to play the “game of base””(Ward and Burns 3). 


When people talk about who actually invented the game of baseball, there is much confusion and misunderstanding. Most people think that Abner Doubleday invented it, but that is not accurate. "Abner Doubleday supposedly "invented" baseball. (Doubleday, in fact, had little to do with the creation of baseball and actually cared little for sports. Arthur Cartwright, a member of a New York City baseball club in the 1840s, defined many of the rules and features of the game as we know today") (Brinkley 507). 


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At the end of Civil War, the interest in baseball had increased greatly. There were more than 200 amateur teams, semiprofessional teams, or clubs. A large number of these teams agreed to join a national association. The first salaried team was the Cincinnati Red Stockings. "Other cities soon fielded professional teams, and in 1876, at the urging of Albert Spalding, they banded together in the National League." The American league was also formed and in 1903 the two leagues played in the first World Series. The Boston Red Sox from the American League beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, who were from the National League. 

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"By then, baseball had become an important business and a great national preoccupation (at least among men), attracting paying crowds in the thousands. Today, there are millions of fans worldwide and there are currently 30 teams in the MLB, which the highest level of play in America. 

Overall, I had an enjoyable experience doing this research topic. I discovered many new things about baseball that I previously did not know, like the fact that Abner Doubleday was not the creator of baseball. Baseball was also a great way for Americans to spend their free time. Baseball was also a boost for the economy because so many people came and paid to watch games. 

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Baseball in the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries

So far in my research, I have found that people have been playing the game of baseball since the Revolutionary War at Pigeon Forge. Some early names for baseball included

Old cat
Goal ball
Town ball
Barn ball
String ball
Stick ball
Soak ball