1917
Selective Service Act Facts for kids: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
about the Selective Service Act.
Why was the Selective Service Act passed?
The Selective Service Act was passed because
when the United States entered WW1, on April
6, 1917, there were only 110,000 servicemen
who could be deployed to join the war. There
was an immediate call for volunteers but,
only 73,000 volunteers enlisted out of the
initial 1 million target in the first 6
weeks of the war.
What was the Selective Service Act? The Selective Service Act
required all men between 21-30 to register
with locally administered draft boards for
federal military conscription by national
lottery.
What date was the Selective Service Act? The date of the
Selective Service Act was enacted enacted on
May 18, 1917
1917
Selective Service Act - Draft Boards:
The Draft boards were a part of the
Selective Service Act which registered,
selected or rejected men of military age for
conscription in the United States armed
forces. The Draft boards were responsible
for the initial registration and selection
to the actual delivery of men to military
training camps. The Selective Service System
was made up of 52 states and 4,648 local
boards.
1917 Selective Service Act
Facts for kids: The Call to Arms
The following fact
sheet on the 1917 Selective Service Act, aka
Selective Draft Act, contains interesting facts and information
about the World War 1 Draft.
Facts
about the Selective Service Act (1917 Draft Act) for
kids - The
Call to Arms
Selective Service Act Fact
1: Conscription was first implemented in the United
States during the American Civil War (1861–65). The 1917 draft
differed from the Civil War draft in that substitutes could not be
hired to take the place of a drafted male.
Selective Service Act Fact
2:
World War 1 began in Europe on July 28, 1914
and the United States entered WW1 on April 6, 1917. WW1
ended on 11 November 1918.
Selective Service Act Fact
3: The law was entitled: "An Act to
authorize the President to increase temporarily the
Military Establishment of the United States".
Selective Service Act Fact
4: President Woodrow Wilson had hoped that the
response for the call for volunteers to fight in WW1 would be
sufficient to avoid the enactment of the Draft.
Selective Service Act Fact
5: Selective conscription was put into effect with a
national lottery to fix the order of military liability for the
10,000,000 Americans registered for service. The lottery randomly
determined the order men were called before a local draft board in
charge of selecting, or exempting, people from military service.
Selective Service Act Fact 6:
The 1917 Selective Service System
managed the induction of some 2.8 million men into the
armed forces between 1917-1918
Selective Service Act Fact 7:
The spirit of patriotism during World
War I led to a high success rate, with fewer than
350,000 men dodging the draft.
Selective Service Act Fact 8:
World War I draft registration cards
were completed by approximately 24 million men living in
the U.S. (98% of the male population) in 1917 and 1918.
Selective Service Act Fact
9: World War I draft registration cards
provided details of name, birth date, birth location,
father's birthplace, and the address of next of kin.
Selective Service Act Fact
10: Aliens were required to register but
were not subject to induction into the American
military.
Continued...
Facts
about the Selective Service Act (1917 Draft Act) for
kids - The
Call to Arms
1917 Selective Service Act
Facts for kids: The Call to Arms
The following fact
sheet on the 1917 Selective Service Act, aka
Selective Draft Act, continues with interesting facts and
information about the World War 1 law and the Draft Boards.
Facts
about the Selective Service Act (1917 Draft Act) for
kids - The
Call to Arms
Selective Service Act Fact
11: Only a small percentage of men who
registered for the draft were actually called up for
military service.
Selective Service Act Fact
12: The official drawing of numbers to
determine the men of the country to constitute the first
draft for the National Army was July 1917.
Selective Service Act Fact 13:
Draft Boards: Not all of the men who registered
for the draft actually served in the military and not all men who
served in the military registered for the draft.
Selective Service Act Fact 14:
Local Draft Boards: The function of
the local draft board was the registration, rejection
and selection of men of military age to the US armed
forces. The local draft board was also responsible to
the government for the mobilization to the military
training camp.
Selective Service Act Fact 15:
Local Draft Boards: The Local Draft
Boards were responsible for registering and classifying
individuals. There were five World War I draft
classifications. Every registrant was considered
belonging to Class 1, until his status (giving him the
right of deferred classification) was fully established
Selective Service Act Fact 16:
Various considerations were taken
into account by the members of the draft boards to
determine whether a man should be called up and the
order in which registrants would be called including:
● The medical fitness of
individual registrants
● The needs for manpower in
certain industries and in agriculture
● Special family circumstances
and dependents
Selective Service Act Fact 17:
Local Draft Boards:
Conscription was decided
by the classification of individuals.
The first
candidates
were to be drawn
from Class
I. Members of
each class
below Class
I were
available for conscription,
only if the
pool of all
available candidates in
the class
above it were
exhausted. The classes were as
follows:
●
Class 1:
Eligible and liable for military service
● Class 2:
Temporarily deferred, but available for military
service.
● Class 3:
Exempted, but available for military service.
● Class 4:
Exempted due to extreme hardship
● Class 5:
Ineligible for military service.
Selective Service Act Fact 18:
Local Draft Boards: Some of the
largest US cities had over 50 local draft boards.
Selective Service Act Fact 19:
District Draft Boards: A district
appeal board was established in each Congressional
district to hear appeals from the decisions of the local
draft boards. A final appeal from the district boards'
decisions could be made to the President of the United
States.
Selective Service Act Fact
20: The activities of the Selective
Service System of WW1 were terminated at the end of the
Great War.
Facts
about the Selective Service Act (1917 Draft Act) for
kids - The
Call to Arms
Facts
about the Selective Service Act for kids: American entry
and US role World War I
On April 6, 1917 the United States
Senate declared war on Germany
and fought with the allies in WW1. For additional
facts and information refer to the following links: .
Selective Service Act for kids - President Woodrow Wilson Video
The article on the Selective Service Act provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
Woodrow Wilson video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 28th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921.
Selective Service Act
●
Interesting Facts about Selective Service Act for kids and schools
●
Key events
and Selective Service Act for kids
●
The Selective Service Act, a major
event in US history
●
Woodrow Wilson Presidency from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921
●
Fast, fun facts about the Selective Service Act
●
Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Woodrow Wilson
●
Woodrow Wilson Presidency and
Selective Service Act for schools,
homework, kids and children |