In 1898, the US navy sent the USS Maine to Havana. It was sunk by an explosion. The US thought that the Spanish had done it, and that knowledge combined with the yellow journalism made the demand for war against Spain irresistible. They both declared war on each other.

The United States won and acquired Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines. We gained a lot more land and resources because of the war. However, the war began the issue of imperialism and split us into two different sides: the side that supported imperialism and the side that did not.

This affected the US because the citizens had two differing opinions of imperialism. This affected the world because it showed them that we were not afraid to expand our power.

Yellow journalism affected America and the world because it influenced people's opinions concerning the Spanish-American War. It exaggerated the destruction of the USS Maine, making unverified claims that the Spanish had destroyed it. This influence pushed people to want to go to war with the Spanish. Yellow journalism affected things badly for Spain. It was one of the factors that made them eventually lose the islands they owned to America.

We were fighting in the war for over a year, helping on the sea, land, and with supplies and money, until November 11th, 1918, when Germany signed an armistice.

This affected the US because it made citizens ration their food and supplies, took away their freedom of speech, and made over 4.7 million US citizens fight. Its role in the world was that US involvement caused the war to be won faster and with fewer deaths on the Allies' side.

The League of Nations was a part of the Treaty of Versailles. The League of Nations was an international organization. It was supposed to help reduce future conflicts, but it was not as powerful as it should have been because the US never joined it. The Senate never approved the decision, even though President Wilson was one of the creators of the League of Nations. Most people didn't want to join because they thought they would lose independence and wanted to stay out of foreign conflicts in the future.

I think these things affected the US because we made separate peace treaties with Germany because we didn't like the League of Nations. So, instead, we signed the Treaty of Berlin with them. This made it so we kept our independence but also isolated ourselves from European countries.

These things affected the rest of the world because the US didn't like the League of Nations, so we didn't sign the Treaty, and the League was way weaker. Also, the Treaty of Versailles had a big impact on Germany. Their economy basically collapsed, and it made a lot of Germans harbor resentment because they didn't think the war was entirely their fault. This showed up 20 years later in WW2.

This affected the US because it took away our right to free speech. Many people thought it was a violation of the First Amendment, and many people were opposed to the law. This also affected the rest of the world because the news in American newspapers was very restricted. The only news that was allowed was the news that the US wanted. This could be either good or bad, depending on which side you were on. If you were Germany, there was no news you could use from the US to help you, but if you were the Allies, none of your plans were being leaked.

These laws were created to try and prevent people from saying anything that could help the opposing side in the war, but also restricted free speech and any opposing thoughts about the US government or the war in general.

The US wanted to finish building the Panama Canal because of the military and economic advantages they would gain. They wanted a quicker and easier way to get their naval military forces from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans without having to go all the way around. The Panama Canal basically cut the trip in half. This also helped our defense capabilities because we could defend both sides of the continent more easily. A few economic advantages was the travel time was cut by almost half, which lowered shipping costs. It also helped the US control many trade routes between Europe and Asia because going through the Panama Canal was the fastest way.

This affected the US because it lowered shipping costs, increased income because of the number of ships passing through, and made our naval forces even more powerful.

This also affected the rest of the world because it made global trade much faster and easier, but created some conflicts with the Latin America countries, because they thought that the US's control over the Panama Canal was imperialism.

Kennan, George, et al. “U.S. imperialism.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._imperialism. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Wanamaker, J. “Big stick ideology.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_stick_ideology. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Spanish-American War:

Degetau, Frederico. “Spanish–American War.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Spanish-American War - Philippines, Cuba, Conflict.” Britannica, 15 February 2025, https://www.britannica.com/event/Spanish-American-War/Fighting-in-the-Philippines-and-Cuba. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Yellow Journalism:

“Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations.” Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations - Office of the Historian, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1866-1898/yellow-journalism. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Yellow journalism.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism. Accessed 9 March 2025.

U.S. Involvement in World War I:

“Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations.” Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations - Office of the Historian, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/wwi. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Wikipedia. “United States in World War 1.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_in_World_War_I. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Treaty of Versailles:

“Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations.” Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations - Office of the Historian, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/paris-peace. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Treaty of Peace with Germany (Treaty of Versailles), 1919.” U.S. Capitol - Visitor Center, https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/artifact/treaty-peace-germany-treaty-versailles-1919. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Treaty of Versailles.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles. Accessed 9 March 2025.

The Home Front during World War I:

“Espionage Act of 1917 and Sedition Act of 1918 (1917-1918) | Constitution Center.” The National Constitution Center, https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/historic-document-library/detail/espionage-act-of-1917-and-sedition-act-of-1918-1917-1918. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Sedition Act of 1918.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedition_Act_of_1918. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Panama Canal:

Brenner, Victor D. “Panama Canal.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama_Canal. Accessed 9 March 2025.

de Lesseps, Ferdinand. “Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations.” Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations - Office of the Historian, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1899-1913/panama-canal. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Panama Canal | Definition, History, Ownership, Treaty, Map, Locks, & Facts.” Britannica, 5 March 2025, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Panama-Canal. Accessed 9 March 2025.

New Innovations or Weapons from the War:

“How Britain Invented The Tank In The First World War.” Imperial War Museums, https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/how-britain-invented-the-tank-in-the-first-world-war. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“Military Technology in World War I | Articles & Essays | Newspaper Pictorials: World War I Rotogravures, 1914-1919 | Digital Collections.” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/collections/world-war-i-rotogravures/articles-and-essays/military-technology-in-world-war-i/. Accessed 9 March 2025.

“World War I - Technology, 1914, Arms Race.” Britannica, 6 March 2025, https://www.britannica.com/event/World-War-I/Technology-of-war-in-1914. Accessed 9 March 2025.

Machine guns were invented in 1884. They were often used in the war. They could fire 600 bullets per minute with a range of more than 1,000 yards. This gave a good advantage to the defense because these rapid-fire weapons could destroy the other side's offense.

Tanks were invented in 1915 by Britain and first used in battle in 1916. They were able to cross rough terrain, squash barbed wire, and withstand arms fire. They were able to push through enemy lines and protect their troops.

There were quite a few different chemical weapons invented in WWI. Most of them were created to kill many people in one area. A few of the chemicals created were chlorine, phosgene, and mustard gas. They were used as liquids in artillery shells, which would break on impact. The liquid would then evaporate. Chlorine and phosgene were very deadly and affected the lungs, while mustard gas caused painful chemical burns.

I think the weapons affected the US because the invention of all these new weapons affected the US's industry. We began producing many of these new weapons to use in the war and helped with the growth of the US economy during the war. I also think it helped our economy as a whole because these inventions paved the way for more inventions later on.

I think these weapons affected the world as a whole because there were a lot more deaths on the battlefield once the weapons were introduced. Machine guns and chemical agents were especially deadly and dangerous, as they could kill many people at one time. However, just like in the US, it also boosted many economies because of the need for weapons.