In November 1919 President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…”  The cessation of hostilities between the Allied nations and Germany occurred on November 11, 1918, the end of “the war to end all wars.”  World War 1 official ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles several months later.

During World War I Brown University adopted a wartime curriculum since the majority of students were enlisted men on active service.  University buildings were transformed to reflect this curriculum: Hope College and University, Maxcy, and Caswell Halls were turned into barracks; the first floor of Rockefeller Hall was a mess hall; Rhode Island Hall was the headquarters of the Student Army Training Corps; and the first floor of Manning Hall was the headquarters of the Naval Unit.  According to statistics published in 1919 by the War Records Committee, 1,974 alumni, faculty, and students were in military service during World War I.  The Soldiers Memorial Arch was dedicated on April 6, 1921, to the memory of the 41 alumni and students and one faculty member who died in service during the war.