| Summary |
This study examines the effect of the First World War on the urban expansion of Norfolk, Virginia. A relatively minor, although regionally significant, port before World War I, Norfolk became in the years of that war a military-commercial center of national importance. The study is arranged chronologically. It begins with an overview of Norfolk before the outbreak of war in 1914, continues on to a discussion of the war's effect on Norfolk before America's entrance in 1917 follows through to an evaluation of the positive and negative influences brought to Norfolk by American involvement in the war, and concludes with an assessment of the First World War's long range effect on the city in the aftermath of the conflict. Norfolk before World War I was a rapidly expanding commercial port. Guided by the progressive tenets of the post-Civil War New South Creed, the city's local promoters pulled her from the depths of despair that had descended upon her with that earlier conflict and, riding the optimlstic wave brought by coal companies and railroad lines, inched her toward prosperity. The beginning of war in Europe, by increasing that continent's need for American resources, furthered this prosperity. America's entrance into the war shifted Norfolk from a primarily commercial to a primarily military center. The federal government's astute awareness of Norfolk's strategic location led to the establishment of numerous military facilities in the region, the most significant of which was the Hampton Roads Naval Operating Base. In the year and a half that followed, the federal government replaced the local promoters as Norfolk's leading advocates. The shift to a military interest, however, did not change the basic rhythm of Norfolk's course--she continued move steadily forward. The forward movement was, of course, occasionally interrupted by obstacles. The federal arrival in Norfolk brought about a series of difficulties, as labor, housing, transportation, and utilities problems plagued the city for the duration of the war. In addition, those difficulties common to most American cities in wartime--food, fuel, and energy shortages, coat of living increases, and monetary contributions demanded for the continuation of the war effort--further hampered Norfolk's development. To her credit, though, Norfolk survived the sacrifices well and ended the war period with the same spirit of optimism in which she had begun. The immediate aftermath of World War I showed just how well Norfolk had weathered the storm. While her local promoters regained the prominent position that they had held prior to 1917, they did so in a spirit of cooperation with the now well established military-federal authorities. In a similar vein of cooperation, the commercial and military spheres united in a partnership that discouraged conflict and promoted joint p rogress. The Norfolk of 1918, then, became a model of military-civilian cooperation and one of the forerunners of the military-industrial complex. |
