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N0KFQ > TODAY 15.05.12 17:07l 54 Lines 2540 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 22417_KB0WSA
Read: GUEST
Subj: Today in History - May 15
Path: IZ3LSV<IW0QNL<IK6ZDE<I0OJJ<VE3UIL<N0KFQ<KB0WSA
Sent: 120515/1537Z 22417@KB0WSA.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.50
May 15, 1942:
Seventeen states put gasoline rationing into effect
On this day in 1942, gasoline rationing began in 17 Eastern
states as an attempt to help the American war effort during World
War II. By the end of the year, President Franklin D. Roosevelt
had ensured that mandatory gasoline rationing was in effect in
all 50 states.
America had been debating its entrance into World War II until
the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The
following day, Congress almost unanimously approved Roosevelt's
request for a declaration of war against Japan and three days
later Japan's allies Germany and Italy declared war against the
United States. On the home front, ordinary Americans almost
immediately felt the impact of the war, as the economy quickly
shifted from a focus on consumer goods into full-time war
production. As part of this transformation, women went to work in
the factories to replace enlisted men, automobile factories began
producing tanks and planes for Allied forces and households were
required to limit their consumption of such products as rubber,
gasoline, sugar, alcohol and cigarettes.
Rubber was the first commodity to be rationed, after the Japanese
invasion of the Dutch East Indies cut off the U.S. supply; the
shortage of rubber affected the availability of products such as
tires. Rationing gasoline, it was reasoned, would conserve rubber
by reducing the number of miles Americans drove. At first, the
government urged voluntary gasoline rationing, but by the spring
of 1942 it had become evident that these efforts were
insufficient. In mid-May, the first 17 states put mandatory
gasoline rationing into effect, and by December, controls were
extended across the entire country.
Ration stamps for gasoline were issued by local boards and pasted
to the windshield of a family or individual's automobile. The
type of stamp determined the gasoline allotment for that
automobile. Black stamps, for example, signified non-essential
travel and mandated no more than three gallons per week, while
red stamps were for workers who needed more gas, including
policemen and mail carriers. As a result of the restrictions,
gasoline became a hot commodity on the black market, while legal
measures of conserving gas--such as carpooling--also flourished.
In a separate attempt to reduce gas consumption, the government
passed a mandatory wartime speed limit of 35 mph, known as the
"Victory Speed."
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ KB0WSA.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: n0kfq@winlink.org
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