Memories for Veterans Day

Bob Petersen.

Editor’s Note: This memory surrounds World War II, a conflict now receding so far into the past that the youngest of those who served and fought are now in their 90s. America’s involvement in the conflict began in 1941, three years after it started, and it lasted until the German armed forces surrendered unconditionally to the Allies on May 7, 1945. 

Not everyone with strong memories of that war actually served, however. For all the men and women who left to fight for their country, even more remained behind to keep the world turning for their families, communities and country. The memories that Bob Petersen shares here about World War II are of that variety – those from the home front.

World War II: The Home Front

by BOB PETERSEN

As a youngster, I recall in 1941 our family sitting in the living room of our home in Chicago, listening to President Roosevelt asking Congress to declare “a state of war” between the United States and the Empire of Japan following Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7.

Actually, World War II began earlier – in September 1939 – and I must admit I was not at all aware of world conditions. I was only eight years old at that time.

By the end of 1941, however, I became fully aware of world happenings and eagerly followed the events as they unfolded. There was no TV in those days, so the main source of news was the radio or the Chicago Tribune newspaper. 

I would eagerly wait for the Sunday Tribune supplement to study its photos and colored features of military equipment and markings, and its large, colored photos of admirals and generals. I kept a scrapbook of those items. Unfortunately, that scrapbook was never saved as I think it did not make it to our new home in Mount Prospect when we moved in 1947.

Daily I would watch for the front-page news that would show the current battle lines in Europe and the Pacific Islands, and I devised my own little war game. I had a small fleet of warships – a battleship, an aircraft carrier, a cruiser, a destroyer and a submarine – and with a ruler in hand, I would assign the speed of each ship and the range of cannon-fire distance. So there I would lie on the linoleum floor, playing my game and using a wad of clay attached to the ship to designate hits and damage.

More resourceful were things done as a family to help the war effort. Father was selected as the civil defense block captain and was issued a white helmet with a red, white and blue “CD” emblem on it, as well as several large, hand-pump fire extinguishers to be distributed. 

The extinguishers used water and came with instructions and information for use in the event of an air raid – not very likely, but nevertheless, we were well prepared. These preparations included a check of the city block for “lights out” compliance when the warning sirens sounded during practice air raids. Father also saw that at one corner of our city block, a flag pole was installed to fly the American flag.

Mother’s war efforts included saving tin cans and grease. Tin cans had to be cut open at each end and flattened. Grease, from cooking, was saved in a large coffee can. We wondered why we saved grease, but the government extracted glycerin from it to use in explosives.

As kids, we did our part, too. I was a Boy Scout at the time, and we conducted numerous paper-collection drives and other drives for scrap metal and old rubber tires. We collected many aluminum pots and pans.

My sister and I would collect milkweed pods in the fall, and as I remember, we got 25 cents for each onion sackful. There were many open fields (we called them “prairies”) along the railroad track and empty lots where we would find milkweed plants. The silk from the milkweed pods, we were told, was used as fill for life jackets.

To prevent hoarding, prices were fixed. Food and gasoline were rationed. Tires were impossible to get (unless you knew someone), and of course there were black markets – for the right price, you could get most anything. 

Every individual in a household was issued a War Ration Book by the Office of Price Administration. Ration stamps had to be used whenever buying rationed goods.

A separate coupon book was issued for the purchase of gasoline, and the license-plate number on a person’s car had to match the number on the coupon. Most coupons were A, for limited use. Because Father worked for a company that was vital to the war effort, he was able to get B coupons, which allowed him a few more gallons of gasoline to travel to and from work. A C coupon for additional gas was also issued, plus a coupon designation T for truck owners.

Father drove a 1941 Dodge. After that year, no other cars were manufactured until the end of the war because assembly lines were converted instead to build military vehicles and aircraft. I would end up with Father’s car in 1951 and sell it in 1954 when I got married.

During the course of the war, I do not think we were under any great hardship as far as getting adequate food. Sugar was probably one of the hardest items to get, and the selection of meat was limited. Among other items rationed were bacon, butter, cheese, eggs and milk. 

Mother and Grandmother canned many food items, so our pantry was always well stocked. As a family, we were fortunate to have a large vegetable garden, and we raised chickens, so eggs were more than plentiful. Mother even canned eggs. If I recall correctly, the eggs were kept in a five-gallon clay crock filled with a liquid – sodium silicate – that preserved the eggs quite well. 

Many of the “prairies” I mentioned, and empty lots, were turned into so-called Victory Gardens, and several families would tend them to grow their own vegetables.

Helping the war effort also involved buying War Saving Bonds. Father bought bonds through a payroll savings plan at work while we kids bought 25-cent War Stamps at school. When our book was filled, $18.75 bought a $25 bond.

The war ended in 1945 with the surrender of Germany in May and Japan in August of that year. Ten years later, I left the home front to be stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army. 

Bob Petersen has visited Door County every year since 1952 – with the exception of the years he spent in the service – and moved permanently to Sturgeon Bay 21 years ago.