League of Nations Puzzle

1920s-1930s
Dexterity puzzle (paper, metal, unknown materials)

The League of Nations Puzzle coyly asks, “Can the United States Keep Out of the League?” and tasks the player with arranging “dark balls” along the fence and the “bright ball” in the middle. The completed puzzle provides a symbolic representation of the anti-League of Nations sentiment in the U.S. after WWI and during the Great Depression. Some favored isolationism and U.S. sovereignty while others balked at joining an organization with Asian and African countries. The U.S. ultimately did not join the League of Nations, but later joined the United Nations in 1944.