Historic American Propaganda Posters Propel USA 250th Anniversary Showcase Auction to Nearly $200,000
Rare World War I and World War II propaganda posters include iconic imagery featuring Winston Churchill, Uncle Sam and a Tuskegee Airman.
DALLAS, Texas (June 10, 2026) — Heritage's June 6 USA 250th Anniversary War & Government Posters Showcase Auction realized $198,578, underscoring sustained collector demand for rare World War I and World War II propaganda posters, wartime Americana, and historically significant government-issued graphics. The carefully curated sale brought together some of the most recognizable visual symbols of American and Allied wartime messaging, led by a scarce World War II conservation poster featuring caricatures of Axis leaders and a powerful war bonds poster depicting one of the famed Tuskegee Airmen.
Heritage’s Showcase auctions are designed to offer collectors access to works at more approachable price points than the company’s marquee Signature® auctions.
The auction's top lot was a World War II Propaganda poster, Keep 'em Frying!, that was produced circa 1942 by the Work Projects Administration for the Los Angeles County Defense Committee on Consumers' Interest. Realizing $26,250, the poster sets a new record for Heritage Auctions as the most expensive 20th-century propaganda poster ever sold. Keep ‘em Frying! exemplifies the creativity and urgency of America's home-front conservation campaigns during World War II. Using satirical depictions of Axis leaders, the design encouraged civilians to conserve cooking oil and other resources vital to the war effort, reflecting the broad mobilization that defined the American wartime experience.
This compelling World War II poster features a resolute Tuskegee Airman, specifically Lieutenant Robert W. Deiz, poised for flight, symbolizing the courage and determination of the famed African American fighter pilots. The rallying call "Keep us flying!" urges the public to support the war effort by purchasing war bonds.
Following was a 1943 U.S. Government Printing Office war bonds poster, Keep Us Flying! by artist Betsy Graves Reyneau, which realized $8,437.50. The striking image features Lieutenant Robert W. Deiz, one of the celebrated Tuskegee Airmen, poised for flight beneath the rallying call urging Americans to purchase war bonds.
During World War I, children supported the United States by purchasing war savings stamps, and this poster, featuring Uncle Sam offering stamps to children, encouraged their participation.
Additional highlights included a 1917 World War I War Savings Stamps poster, Boys and Girls! You Can Help Your Uncle Sam, illustrated by James Montgomery Flagg, realized $4,500. The poster encouraged children to participate in the national war effort through the purchase of War Savings Stamps that could ultimately be exchanged for War Savings Certificate Stamps. Featuring Flagg's beloved Uncle Sam imagery, the work reflects the government's efforts to engage citizens of all ages in supporting American troops and financing victory abroad.
Also reaching $4,500 was the celebrated British World War II propaganda poster Let Us Go Forward Together, issued in 1940 shortly after Winston Churchill became Prime Minister. Produced by the Ministry of Information during one of Britain's most challenging wartime periods, the poster became one of the defining visual statements of Allied resolve. Another notable result came from a second James Montgomery Flagg masterpiece, the 1918 World War I poster I am Telling You, which realized $4,500. Featuring Flagg's iconic depiction of Uncle Sam—famously modeled after the artist himself—the poster urged Americans to enlist in the “army of war savers” by purchasing War Savings Stamps. Issued in conjunction with National War Savings Day on June 28, 1918, the work remains one of the most recognizable examples of American patriotic advertising and wartime persuasion.
Complete results can be found at HA.com/42195.
