Technology and Innovation
The Allies introduced the U.S. military to technological advancements in weapons, medical treatment, communication, and transportation. On the battlefield, American forces fought using airplanes, long-range artillery, gas, motorized ambulances, mobile X-ray equipment, wireless radio, and other modern tools of war.
Explore photographs, textual, and other records related to technology and innovation in World War I in our Catalog.
There are more than 110,000 World War I photographs in the National Archives Catalog.
- American Unofficial Collection of World War I Photographs, 1917 - 1918
- German Military Activities and Personnel, 1917 - 1918
- Browse all Items
- British Photographs of World War I, 1914 - 1918
- Browse all Items
Interested in further online research? Visit the National Archives Catalog to begin your own search.
While many resources are available online for research, there are many more records to discover in National Archives research rooms across the country. The following records have been described at the Series and File Unit level, but have not yet been digitized. This list is not exhaustive; please consult our Catalog to browse more records, and contact the Reference Unit listed in each description for more information.
Explore teaching and learning resources for World War I, including primary sources, online tools, lesson plans, and multimedia.
- Find primary sources and online activities for teaching World War I on DocsTeach.org, our online tool for teaching with documents.
- The National Archives has partnered with the United States World War One Centennial Commission, the National World War I Museum & Memorial, and other partner organizations to present a collection of World War I Education Resources.
- Mechanical Computers and Sound Collectors: World War I Anti-Aircraft Technology, The Unwritten Record blog
- The Artist at War: Painters, Muralists, Sculptors, Architects Worked to Provide Camouflage for Troops in World War I, Prologue Magazine, Spring 2012
- Found in the Archives: First President to Fly in/Steer a Blimp?, Forward with Roosevelt blog
- Day 69: FDR Rides a Dirigible, 1918, Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library Tumblr
“Our Wings of Victory,” the Manufacture of Military Aeroplanes During WWI, The Unwritten Record blog