The General Pershing War Trophy Train
Lentz, Poster (Hey Skinnay! The War Trophy Train), c.1918
digital.librarycompany.org
Soldiers from Hicksville (and in general, from anywhere in the country) had first arrived in France early in September of 1917. By that time, after three years of European combat, prisoners has been captured and exchanged, the front had moved back and forth multiple times, and many men had died on "the wrong side" of it. Much equipment and weaponry had been captured or simply abandoned in place. Discards were everywhere: helmets, uniforms, defunct artillery pieces, indeterminate objects bearing insignia. It all became fodder to use for fund-raising.
By the time of the Fourth Liberty Loan campaign, the U.S. had collected and organized surplus matériel de guerre into trainloads of "trophies" that would crisscross America. The trains' arrivals were carefully staged. Nearby workplaces were told in advance to close, so that workers and their families would be ready. The locomotives' shrill whistles would blow steadily as they neared towns; factory whistles would join in. Military aircraft sometimes flew overhead and dropped "blank" bombs, which exploded above. Bands played as parades led the community to the Trophy Train.
The stops typically lasted for two hours. The trains brought dignitaries to address the crowds, and a combat veteran or two (perhaps Canadian or British). Local clergy and politicos added their own thoughts. All of them urged the audiences to buy more bonds or to donate - incidentally, each town had been assessed a target dollar amount; it would not do for one's town to miss the quota. Most of the locals (at least most of the males) toured the exhibits. Small souvenirs of the war might be sold to raise additional funds.
Shirley Wajda, America's World War I Trophy Trains: War Relics as Propaganda
medium.com/@shirleywajda/americas-world-war-i-trophy-trains-war-relics-as-propaganda-57f7a9b811e1ts
Much to Hicksville's dismay, the "Pershing Train" was behind schedule when it rolled into town, and thus its stop was briefer than planned. All town businesses had been closed for the afternoon. While waiting for the delayed train, a band from one of the local military airfields played for the crowd, and it also accompanied the singing of two soloists who were stationed at the field. The last two Civil War veterans residing in Hicksville presented the village with a large new flag, which was hoisted on the pole at Depot Square. More than $40,000 worth of bonds was sold.
The Eagle offered a detailed account of the train's stop in Freeport, which lasted longer:
Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 16, 1918
Note: When the trains were assembled early in 1918, almost no
U.S. troops had seen combat, and they would have had little to
say. Canadians and Brits had been in the trenches since 1915.
The "Trophy Train" concept has survived; Russia recently has been using it in an attempt to boost citizen support for its military presence in Syria. See the Appendix below.
