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Pages of History
December meant the arrival of another Christmas season.
Small town Main Streets were decorated and the stores were filled with the usual holiday merchandise so there was no reason to shop anywhere else.
Of course, gasoline rationing made it difficult for people to drive to the bigger cities for shopping. In 1944 motorists with “A” coupons were limited to two gallons of gas a week.
And people who wished to spend the winter in warmer climates had to take the train.
The Office of Price Administration (OPA) warned motorists anyone caught using gasoline and ration coupons for “illegal travel” to winter destinations, such as California or Florida, would be in trouble.
“All cars bearing out-of-state license plates will be checked by OPA investigators and tourists may find it difficult to drive their cars back home.“ New car and truck tires were practically unattainable but Grade 3 car tires were removed from rationing. Grade 3 tires were used tires in need of repair or recapping.
People were advised there could be a shortage of coal and heating oil if the weather turned cold. Because of the war fewer men were working in the coal mines and oil fields while the demand for fuel by war industries and the military had doubled or tripled.
The 6th War Loan drive was met with an unenthusiastic response.
Sales were slow throughout the state. By the time the drive ended Dec. 16, several Cedar County towns had not yet made their quotas.
“There is no earthly reason for the miserable showing we have made to date,“ said the Laurel Advocate. “The job must be done if we have any pride in our community at all.“ The goal would eventually be met, but only by counting purchases of series E, F, and G bonds as war bonds and extending the deadline until Dec. 31.
Apparently the government had not yet figured out how to print money instead of begging and borrowing from the people.
Although American farmers had produced a record harvest in 1944, the OPA warned that there could be serious food shortages during the first quarter of 1945. To avert a potential crisis, major changes in the food rationing program were put into place.
It was noted 1000 workers were needed in the Omaha packing houses to take care of the winter hog run. Top wages would be paid with plenty of overtime and draft deferments as an added inducement.
Consumers were warned that sugar also would be in short supply in 1945.
The reason: labor and machine shortages in Louisiana and Hawaii, and the conversion of land used to raise sugar beets to food crops. In a few southern states, the shortage resulted in a black market because large quantities of sugar were needed for moonshine stills.
Another item that was in short supply was tobacco. Cigarette smoking had increased 75 percent during the war. The increased demand contributed to a shortage of long leaf tobacco from which cigarettes were made. In December 1944 cigarettes were practically unobtainable.
To stave off nicotine fits, chain smokers were willing to walk more than a mile for a Camel. Others rolled their own using cigarette papers and pipe tobacco. To ramp up production, the OPA even considered classifying cigarette manufacturing as an essential industry.
As the year 1944 drew to a close, the Battle of the Bulge was raging in Europe. It began on Dec. 16 with a surprise German attack on Allied forces in the Ardennes region between Belgium and Luxembourg.
This offensive saw some of the bloodiest fighting of the entire war. Hitler’s plan was to have the German Sixth Panzer Army drive through a weak point in the American lines, capture the Belgian port of Antwerp in order to cut off the American supply line, encircle the Allied armies and force the Allied governments to negotiate a peace treaty instead of bowing to Roosevelt’s demand for unconditional surrender. It was reported heavy fighting on two European fronts. General Eisenhower’s forces were closing in on the Rhine, but a shortage of munitions was threatening to stall the drive. War Manpower Commissioner Paul V. McNutt said 300,000 workers were needed in war production plants. Of this number, only 130,000 were needed to produce munitions. The rest were needed to build ships, tanks, artillery, trucks, and aircraft. Because of the shortage of men, McNutt called for intensive recruitment of women, the transfer of employees from non-essential to essential work, and cutting back on the production of civilian goods.
