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Resources
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The purpose of this section is to give the student access to all primary and secondary resources for Unit 3.7: World War II in Montana - 1939 to 1945.
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Historical Documents
"Although war clouds had been gathering for years, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, took all Americans by surprise. Fortunately, several months earlier, the Montana legislature had provided for a state preparedness program. Despite the problems sketched out in this letter from Governor Sam Ford to the region's military commander, the plan went into operation without the hysteria that had characterized the response to the United States' entry into World War I" (Montana Historical Society).
"Embarrassed by their behavior during World War I, Montana exhibited little animosity toward the resident German population during the Second World War. The Japanese, a more readily identifiable minority, were another matter. Fearful that Japanese Americans might help the Japanese military in case of an invasion of the United States, the federal government evacuated all people of Japanese descent from the West Coast to more isolated areas. Montana, whose colleges, CCC camps, and military posts were slated to receive many evacuees, reacted sharply - particularly to the idea that Japanese Americans might be allowed to attend the university, taking the places of young men fighting overseas" (Montana Historical Society).
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