United States Department of War

Line drawing of the Department of War's seal.

The United States Department of War, also called the War Office, was the department of the United States government's executive branch responsible for the operation and maintenance of land (and later air) forces from 1789 until September 18, 1947, when it became part of the National Military Establishment, renamed on August 10, 1949, the Department of Defense. The War Department also had responsibility for the young nation's naval affairs until the establishment of the Navy Department in 1798.

United States Department Of War Media

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  The seal of the Board of War and Ordnance, which the U.S. War Department's seal is derived from

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  The emblem of the Department of the Army, derived from the seal of the U.S. War Department

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  U.S. War Department weather map depicting weather conditions on October 21, 1879, over New England at 7:35 am. Produced for the U.S. Army during the War of the Pacific.

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  The State, War, and Navy Building in 1917