Immigration Restrictions in Canada (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)In 1917 an American newspaper correspondent from THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN reported that the dominion of Canada, heeding the protests of it's most impoverished citizens, moved to restrict the flow of the immigrants to their shores: "The commissioners say that in Canada, as in Australia, there is a strong current of opposition to immigration as it is now carried on, particularly among the wage earners in the cities."
Read about the Canadian Preferences in English...
The French Navy Sank Their Own Submarine (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)This news piece appeared in a Georgia newspaper during the closing weeks of American "neutrality". The first report of this French naval blunder involving a French torpedo boat sinking a French submarine came from Berlin, rather from Paris or London, where such events would never make it past the censors. This brief notice makes no mention as to the original source or who witnessed the accident. Civilization: An Anti-War Film (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)Attached is a brief review of Civilization, the silent anti-war film produced by Thomas Ince in 1917. Sadly, Ince underestimated the power of film as a means of persuasion; World War I raged on for another year and a half following it's release. Agent is Held for Enticing Negroes (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)One of the seldom remembered casualties in the Northern migration history was the prosecution of those Whites who both encouraged and provided monetary favors to the African-American families seeking a better life in the North.
To learn how many African-Americans served in the W.W. I American Army, click here.
Czarevitch Alexis (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)Here is a terribly unflattering and premature report concerning the death of the Romanov heir, Czarevitch Alexis (1904 - 1918). Although he would not actually be murdered until the July of 1918, this article reports that his death was entirely due to poor health. *Watch a Documentary About the Romanovs* President Wilson Exonerates Mexico & Japan (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)When the diplomatic leadership in Washington began to unravel the plot that was revealed behind the Zimmerman telegram, the Wilson administration wisely concluded that the governments of Japan and Mexico were not complicit in the scheme that had been cooked-up by the Germans. Prohibition Comes to Washington, D.C. (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)In 1917 Washington, D.C. had no mayor, no city council and no say as to the goings on in Congress - the city was lorded over by the President and a Congressional commission. It was set up that way by the founders - and that is how Prohibition came to Washington, D.C. two years earlier than the rest of the nation: with the flick of his wrist, President Wilson signed the Sheppard Bill, legislation that declared that after November 1, 1918 all alcohol would be prohibited in the District of Columbia. The Zimmermann Plot (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)The full text of the telegram to German Ambassador Von Eckhardt from Dr. Alfred Zimmermann outlining the plan to form a military alliance with the nation of Mexico. Should the United States declare war on Germany and Austria, Mexico, in turn, was to attack the American South-West and reclaim her lost colonies. Intolerance Reviewed (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)A short review of the silent classic film, Intolerance by D.W. Griffith: "For many years to come it is sure to be the last word in pictorial achievement. Not only is it deeply enthralling as entertainment, but it also carries a message of such power that pages of editorials have been written around its theme and its treatment." *Watch Some Scenes from the D.W. Griffith's INTOLERANCE* French Soldiers Desperate to Leave the Trenches (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)So horrid was the terror of World War I trench warfare that more than a few of the Frenchmen serving in those forward positions (and others who were simply overcome with life in the military) began to post personal ads in French newspapers, volunteering to marry widows and divorcees with large families in order to be absolved of all military duty.
Read what the U.S. Army psychologists had to say about courage.
A Wedding Vow Anecdote (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)The exclusion of the word "obey" from the traditional wedding vow has been happening for a good while, and it seems to have pre-dated the 1960s; however in the following case, the presiding official at one wedding would only do so for a fee. Anti-Soft Drink Legislation Defeated (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)On the same day that it was announced that the state of Georgia was going to prohibit alcohol a full year and a half prior to the Congressional measure, a bill died in the state legislature that would have prohibited all alcohol substitutes that had caffeine, as well (Georgia, you'll recall is the home of the Coca-Cola Company): "In an effort to force the "bone-dry" majority of the House to the greatest extreme, Representative Stark of Jackson, Friday offered an amendment which would have barred all substitutes for liquor, all patent medicines, and soft drinks containing caffeine." ''Negroes Still Departing'' (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)This short notice from a 1917 Georgia newspaper documented the heavy numbers involved in what has come to be known as the Great migration as more and more African-Americans abandoned their homes in the Southern states preferring life in the North. It is believed that between the years 1910 through 1940, some 1.6 million African Americans participated in this exodus. The Southern journalist who penned these three paragraphs clearly felt a sense of personal rejection:
"The worthless ones are remaining here to be cared for... The departure of these Negroes is not spasmodic. It is a steady drain of the best class of laborers that the South now has. Just what remedy is to prevent it we do not know."
Another article about the great migration can be read here.
The Effects of Unrestricted Submarine Warfare (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)The alarming rise in shipping losses due to the increased presence of German submarines (as foretold in the Zimmermann telegram) had made the American population sit up and take notice in a way that the war had never done before. The attached four notices were printed on the front pages of an Atlanta paper one month prior to the U.S. Congress' declaration of war; each one pertains to military recruiting or the need for military equipment.
The widening of hostilities also served to outrage the Latin American republics: Guatemala would soon break off all relations with Germany and Brazil would declare war in October of that year.
Click here to read about the new rules for warfare that were written as a result of the First World War - none of them pertain to the use of poison gas or submarines.
Theda Bara: Sex Symbol (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)An enthusiastic review of the Hollywood silent film, The Tiger Woman (1917) starring the first (but not the last) female sex symbol of the silent era, Theda Bara (born Theodosia Burr Goodman; 1885-1955).
This very brief review will give you a sense of how uneasily many men must have sat in their chairs when she was pictured on screen.
"She is a very tigerish 'Tiger Woman' in this picture. Her heart, her soul, her finger tips, her eyelashes, her rounded arms, her heaving buzzum, all vibrate to a passion for pearls." Theda Bara retired in 1926, having worked in forty-four films.
Click here to read articles about Marilyn Monroe. • Watch a Theda Bara Film Clip • The Obituary of J.M. Studebaker (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)J.M Studebaker (1833 - 1917) "was a pioneer in vehicle building and lived to see the change in locomotion from oxcarts to automobiles. He had been engaged
in the manufacture of vehicles for sixty-five years". This is a very quick and interesting read, highlighting the key events in the life of this automotive engineer whose name is so readily recognized 105 years after his death. *Home Movie: a Car-Guy and his Studebaker* The Czar Abdicates (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)Attached is a news report from a 1917 issue of THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN announcing:
"Czar Nicholas decided to abdicate the Russian throne only after he had been held up by soldiers and the necessity for such action impressed upon him, according to a dispatch printed in DIE FRANKFURTER ZEITUNG..."
Also included in the report were the text of a speech delivered by the Czar which called for national unity.
*Watch a Color Slide Show of the Romanov Family* Count Von Zeppelin Dies (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)A short notice reporting on the 1917 death of Count Ferdinand Adolf August Heinrich Von Zeppelin (b. 1838). The count is reported to have died a sad and broken man over the failure of his airships to hasten a decisive ending to the First World War and remorseful that his name would forever be associated with the first air raids on civilian targets. Immigration Restrictions in Canada (The Atlanta Georgian, 1917)In 1917 an American newspaper reported that Canada, heeding the protests of it's most impoverished citizens, moved to restrict the flow of the immigrants to their shores: "The commissioners say that in Canada, as in Australia, there is a strong current of opposition to immigration as it is now carried on, particularly among the wage earners in the cities. It is recognized that the development of the land is of prime consideration and that the tide of immigration into the cities has created a surplus, whereas the rural communities have suffered." KEY WORDS: Immigration History Canada,Poor Immigrants 1917,Immigration Policy Canada,Canada Immigration, Australia Immigration, History Immigration,North American Immigration History,Canadian Immigration Restrictions 1917 | 
