World War II and the American Home Front Volume 2
In May 2020 the National Park Service (NPS) entered into an agreement with the National Council on Public History to update the World War II and the American Home Front Theme Study published in October 2007. The initial agreement called for a 6,000-word bibliographic essay that expanded the scope of subjects treated by the original theme study. It also required a survey of properties associated with home front history and an assessment of which properties had potential national significance and, therefore, should be considered for National Historic Landmark status. Dr. Matthew Basso, University of Utah, was selected to serve as the project Principle Investigator and author of the Study.
A group of leading home front scholars and National Park Service historians helped identify five areas—Native American and Indigenous, Latino, LGBTQ, Disability, and Environmental history—ideal for expanded analysis. Research completed since the beginning of the new millennium has underscored the importance of these subjects to an evolving understanding of the era. The richness of this scholarship subsequently prompted the decision to write stand-alone chapters on each topic, rather than one article-length essay that attempted to discuss all five. Time constraints driven by this expansion have meant that these chapters offer an interpretive synthesis but do not delve deeply into primary sources.
This volume is designed to work in conjunction with the 2007 study, also referred to here as Volume 1. Those using this theme study to prepare National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmark nominations on World War II home front properties are urged to read both the chapters in the original theme study and the relevant chapter(s) in this update. The original theme study offers critical background for the history covered in detail in this volume and in-depth and comparative information for nominations related to its themes.
Both volumes are open access. Those wishing to use these materials in their classrooms are welcome to do so. NCPH, NPS, and Dr. Basso hosted a series of webinars exploring the environmental, Native American and Indigenous, Latino, LGBTQ, and disability history of the home front.. These are available to watch via the NCPH YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBD25Mr-qtE&list=PLOXlP9aHA4EzoRWPPzXBBiC7hm4zO3-xP