George Sweatt continued playing baseball with local teams in Iola, working at a barbershop, and coaching high school football. He pursued his musical interests by organizing a barbershop quartet and participating in the Walls Orchestra. After registering for the Military during WWI, he met his wife, Evelyn Groomer. George was drafted into the army, where he served in a segregated regiment, the 816th Pioneer Infantry, stationed in France. Despite the hardships they faced during the wartime, George organized another barbershop quartet and served as a Company Clerk. When George was discharged from the military, he began studying to be a teacher at the Manual Training Normal School in Pittsburg.