Which? Soldier or Mechanic: Enlist in the First Replacement Regiment of Engineers and Be Both

Two figures flank the text: a worker in overalls at a machine on the left and a helmeted soldier at a trench on the right, beneath an eagle and stripes. The tell is the offer of a dual identity, 'Soldier or Mechanic ... and be both', which presents enlistment as an extension of the trade the viewer already has.

Propaganda techniques used in this poster

Identity fusion

Date: 1918
Period: First World War
Made by: First Replacement Regiment of Engineers, U.S. Army (Washington Barracks, D.C.)
Region: North America
Country: United States
Medium: Poster
Issuer type: Military
Regime: Wilson Administration
Leader: Woodrow Wilson
Audience: Domestic public
Purpose: Recruit
Themes: War and the military, Labor
Event: World War I
Regime: Wilson administration
Leader: Woodrow Wilson
Source: Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
Source: U.S. National Archives (NARA), RG 4 (U.S. Food Administration), World War I Posters (NAID 512439), retrieved October 3, 2026
Rights: NARA Unrestricted; hosted by owner decision
First Replacement Regiment of Engineers, U.S. Army (Washington Barracks, D.C.). National Archives and Records Administration, 4-P-156.

Text on the object

Original (English) · read from the image, not independently checked

WHICH?
SOLDIER or MECHANIC
ENLIST IN THE
FIRST REPLACEMENT REGIMENT OF ENGINEERS
AND BE BOTH
FOR INFORMATION ADDRESS POST COMMANDER WASHINGTON BARRACKS D.C.
[monograms at lower corners: L and H]
DESIGNED-ENGRAVED & PRINTED BY PUBLICITY BUREAU, FIRST REPLACEMENT REGIMENT OF ENGINEERS
Central Map Reproduction Plant, Engineer School Washington Barracks, D.C.
1918

The final imprint line at lower right is in very small type; it is read as given, with some doubt over individual words. The monograms L and H sit at the lower left and right corners.