Mary Pickford—born in Canada as Gladys Louise Smith—started her career in the American film industry at the turn of the century. As she rose to fame, she became known as “America’s Sweetheart” through her work in silent films. She was one of the most popular actresses through the 1910s and 1920s.
It was no surprise when Pickford was selected to promote Liberty Bonds—also known as Liberty Loans—in 1917. Liberty Bonds were sold in the United States as a way to support the war effort during World War I. The bonds were promoted as a patriotic duty, but also introduced financial securities to U.S. citizens. Essentially, bonds were purchased by citizens as a loan to the U.S. government, which was then repaid with interest in the future.
After two issues of Liberty Bonds, the Third Liberty Loan Act utilized famous artists to promote the sale far and above the two previous issues of bonds. Soon Liberty Bond posters and events included famous names such as Charlie Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle, Ethel Barrymore, and even Mary Pickford. The campaign was a success and resulted in roughly $17 billion raised, which averaged to approximately $170 for each of the 100 million Americans at the time.
Later on in 1935, Congress and President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law the authority to issue the United States Savings Bond. Similar to Liberty Bonds, savings bonds are financial securities issued as a type of loan to the U.S. Government, which will include interest when redeemed.
In a few years time, Mary Pickford would return to assist the U.S. Treasury with promoting the “Bond-A-Month Plan” in a six week tour of the United States in 1953. The Bond-A-Month plan was a method for a bank customer to authorize the bank to purchase a bond every month, and charge it to one’s checking account. Pickford’s tour in 1953 marked the 35th anniversary of her previous Liberty Bond tour in 1918.
Mary Pickford’s tour included Los Angeles, CA, New York, NY, Washington, DC, Lynn, MA, Boston, MA, Philadelphia, PA, Atlanta, GA, St. Louis, MO, Kansas City, MO, Des Moines, IA, St. Paul-Minneapolis, MN, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Salt Lake City, UT, Portland, OR, and San Francisco, CA. Pickford also met with the employees of the Bendix Aviation Corp., Donnelly Garment Co., Hallmark, Inc., and the Western Auto Supply during her time in Kansas City, MO.
Photographs in the series 56-MP: Photographs of Mary Pickford’s Savings Bonds Tour document Pickford’s travels, presentations, and meetings. The series also includes various newspaper clippings and correspondence. Also, two posters from these events are within the series 56-PP: Mary Pickford’s Savings Bond Tour Posters. Further documentation of Mary Pickford’s tour can be found within the holdings of the Archives II Textual Reference Branch.
The photographs included in this post have no copyright restrictions. If you have any questions about the images in this post or the holdings of the Still Picture Branch, please contact us at stillpix@nara.gov.
Additional Resources
- The History of the U.S. Savings Bond, Interactive Timeline
- List of Historical and Retired Bonds
- Liberty Bonds, Federal Reserve History
- Mary Pickford on the Road Selling Liberty Bonds, Mary Pickford Foundation
PUBLICATION OF PHOTOGRAPHS FURNISHED BY THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES STILL PICTURE BRANCH-RRSS
Generally, copies of photographic records held by the National Archives may be published without special permission or additional fees. The National Archives does not grant exclusive or non-exclusive publication privileges. Copies of Federal records, as part of the public domain, are equally available to all. A small percentage of photographs in our holdings are or may be subject to copyright restrictions. The National Archives does not confirm the copyright status of photographs but will provide any information known about said status. It is the user’s responsibility to obtain all necessary clearances. Any use of these items is made at the researcher’s or purchaser’s own risk.
Proper credit lines are encouraged in the interest of good documentation. They also help inform the public about government photographic resources that are available.
*Because so many of our requests for information cite credits and captions that appear in published works, the inclusion of a photo number in hard copy and electronic publications is of great assistance to both us and the public.
Examples of preferred credit lines are as follows:
- National Archives photo no. 210-G-C241
- Credit National Archives (photo no. 83-G-41368)
- Courtesy National Archives, photo no. 83-G-41430
- National Archives (210-G-A14)
If using a large number of our images, the National Archives will appreciate receiving copies of publications that contain our photographs. Such copies can be sent to the Still Picture Branch or the Library, National Archives and Records Administration.