WWI America: Babe Ruth’s Draft Card

This activity can be used during a unit on World War One. For grades 5-8. Approximate time needed is 10-20 minutes.

Explain the selective service system to students (you can find a brief background on www.sss.gov).

Then ask students to begin the activity and work collaboratively in pairs examining baseball player Babe Ruth’s 1917 draft card. Encourage them to pay attention to the highlighted portions of the draft card at first, but then to explore the entire document using the magnifying glass icons to zoom in and the arrow icons to move around. Carefully read the draft card.

After careful analysis, each pair of students should make a list of the questions that appear on this draft card that would most likely not appear today. Ask students to assess their assumptions and list by discovering what questions are asked on the current selective service registration form at www.sss.gov. Ensure students don’t actually complete the form.

Encourage students to revisit their lists and make edits based on any new information they find.

Then lead a group discussion on what the differences tell us about American society during World War I. Students may point out:

• Concern that federal government officials had with immigration status or country of origin of the draft registrants — during World War I, many Americans immigrated to the United States from European countries involved in the war. Initially there was a question about the allegiance of these immigrants.
• The question asking about race and the tear-off corner for those of “African descent” — the United States was a segregated society during World War I.
• The inquiry about occupation and employer — during World War I certain occupations were exempt from military service. Baseball players were not exempt. This was made clear in the Spring of 1918 when the major league baseball season ended early and ball players found jobs in the war industry or served in the military. Babe Ruth did not serve in the military during World War I, however.

When they finish analyzing the document, students can follow a link to Google Maps to see the location of Ruth’s home in Boston and how far he had to walk to Fenway Park.