Steps To War 1931 - 1939 - It All Seems So Obvious Now. Ethel Graham

This rare and ephemeral classroom chart was prepared by Ethel Graham in Santa Monica, CA in 1939. As the wife of prominent UCLA Political Science Professor Malbone Graham, the author's credit is relegated merely to a 'Mrs. Malbone Graham' in the lower center of the sheet. Three different chronologies outline the buildup of events to the outbreak of the Second World War - Methods of Aggression (right), Methods of Meeting Aggression (left), and Territorial Conquest (center). While the efficacy of the visual learning aid might be questioned, the content of the chart cannot. The information presented is incredibly insightful to the 21st-century eye, with the history of WWII extending back to Japan's conquest of Manchuria, the ineptitude of the League of Nations, and the overall failure of appeasement. Scarce and listed in only one example in WorldCat, at the Wisconsin Historical Society Library. OCLC# 31884571. Sheet Width (in) 28 Sheet Height (in) 18.75 Condition Description Creasing and moderate wear along old fold lines. Toning and a few spots of clean separation along folds visible on the left third of the sheet. A few small tears and spots of soiling visible along the outer edges. Good to very good condition overall. Blank on verso.