The Third Liberty Loan Act () was a
liberty bond sold during
World War I that helped cover the war expenses of the
United States. In effect, the bonds were loans from citizens to the
US Government which would be repaid with interest in the future. There were two previous loan acts, The
Liberty Loan
A liberty bond (or liberty loan) was a war bond that was sold in the United States to support the Allied cause in World War I. Subscribing to the bonds became a symbol of patriotic duty in the United States and introduced the idea of financi ...
Act and The Second Liberty Loan Act, each providing additional
money to the US Government to fund the war. The Third Liberty Loan Act was enacted on April 5, 1918. The third act specifically allowed the US government to issue $3 billion worth of war bonds at a rate of 4.5% interest for up to 10 years with an individual aggregate limit of $45,000. The bonds produced by the Third Liberty Loan Act were not redeemable until September 15, 1928.
The Third Liberty Loan Act was an
amendment to the previous two Liberty Loan acts. The first Liberty Loan have been enacted on April 24, 1917, and issued $5 billion in bonds at a 3.5 percent interest rate. However, this loan was not sufficient to support the United States presence in the war. The second act was put into place on October 1, 1917, only a few months after the first. This time the loan allowed for an additional $3 billion in
bonds at a 4 percent interest rate. The third loan was still insufficient and a fourth act was created on September 28, 1918, which allowed for an even higher amount - $6 billion at 4.25 percent interest rate.
These bonds were sold primarily by the boy and girl scouts. The most famous of bonds poster depicted a boy scout handing a sword to Lady Liberty that is suited for battle.
The scouts ended up selling 2,328,308 liberty bonds between 1917 and 1918. This totaled $354,859,262 that the government owed to the people of the United States and $43,043,698 allocated to the Allied forces.
The expenses covered by these loans included weaponry, medical and surgical supplies, and vehicles.
Though the liberty loans were to be used only to fund the war they are still used to this day to fund matters of extreme cost. The most recent use was in 2001 to offset the cost of rebuilding the areas affected by the
terrorist attacks.
See also
*
Cost of War
*
List of combat vehicles of World War I
*
List of infantry weapons of World War I
This is a list of infantry weapons of World War I (1914-1918).
Austro-Hungarian Empire
Edged weapons
* M1858/61 Kavalleriesäbel
* M1862 Infanteriesäbel
* M1873 Artilleriesäbel
* M1904 Kavalleriesäbel
* M1915 Pioneer sword
Flare guns
* ...
*
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking ...
*
War bond
References
{{reflist
External links
"Ring Me Again Third Liberty Loan" posterat the
University of Michigan Museum of Art
"Halt the Hun! Buy US Government Bonds, Third Liberty Loan"poster at the
Dallas Museum of Art
Third Liberty Loan Pinat the
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...
65th United States Congress
United States home front during World War I