Gravure printing originated in the early 19th century. The process did not become widespread until the early 20th century, however, when newspapers embraced this new technology. Characterized by halftone (black and white) reproductions printed at high speed on a variety of paper stock, gravure printing allowed the newspaper industry to reproduce photographs and artwork on a mass scale on inexpensive newsprint paper.

A new presentation in the American Memory Web site, "Newspaper Pictorials: World War I Rotogravures," features leading newspapers that took advantage of this new printing process during the Great War (1914-1918). Rotogravure printing, which produced richly detailed, high-quality illustrations -- even on inexpensive newsprint paper -- was used to create vivid new pictorial sections. Publishers that could afford to invest in the new technology saw sharp increases both in readership and advertising revenue.

What, exactly, is rotogravure? The rotogravure process, still widely used today, is explained here.

The images in this collection track American sentiment about the war in Europe, week by week, before and after the United States became involved. Events of the war are detailed alongside society news and advertisements touting products of the day, creating a pictorial record of both the war effort and life at home. The presentation also allows you to browse the materials by date and publication title.