X-Nico

13 unusual facts about Conscription in the United States


1968 Pittsburgh Steelers season

Bleier would play ten games for the Steelers before being drafted again—this time by the military to fight in Vietnam.

A.k.a. Cassius Clay

Directed by Jimmy Jacobs, the film was made during Ali's exile from the sport for refusing to be inducted into the US Army on religious grounds.

Al Piechota

He was drafted by the United States military to serve in World War II.

Army of the United States

The Army of the United States is the official name for the conscription (U.S. term: draft) force of the United States Army that may be raised at the discretion of the United States Congress in the event of the United States entering into a major armed conflict.

Charles W. Dullea

During the war years, he presided over a police force diminished by conscription and organized auxiliary citizens to assist his depleted ranks.

James R. Hendrix

In 1944, at age 18, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and sent to basic training in Florida, the first time he had been more than a few miles from his hometown.

Julius Kahn

He helped draft and secure the passage of the National Defense Act of 1915, the Selective Draft Act of 1917, and the National Defense Act of 1920.

Keith L. Ware

He was drafted into the United States Army in July 1941 and sent to Officer Candidate School in 1942, emerging a platoon leader stationed at Fort Ord, California.

Project VOLAR

The findings of Project VOLAR were especially valuable to the U.S. Army when conscription was discontinued in 1973, and were used to continue recruiting for an all-volunteer army force.

Ray Caldwell

Caldwell left the Yankees in mid-August to join a shipbuilding firm in order to avoid military service after being picked in the draft.

United States Army Reserve

The Army of the United States is the official name for the conscripted force of the Army that may be raised at the discretion of the United States Congress, often at time of war or mobilization for war.

Vic Edelbrock

This work was categorized as critical to the war effort and would keep Vic from being drafted for the remainder of the war.

William Fairbanks

He was then living at 115 Dudley Avenue in Venice, where he registered for the draft of World War I.


Wilfred Feinberg

Feinberg has authored many seminal opinions, including United States v. Miller, which upheld the constitutionality of a federal law prohibiting the burning of draft cards, NLRB v. J.P. Stevens & Co, the famous labor union case that inspired the movie, Norma Rae, and Kelly v. Wyman, aff'd sub nom. Goldberg v. Kelly, 397 U.S. 254, 271 (1970).