An a sticker allowed the driver 3 or 4 gallons a week. Fabric was needed for the war effort to make uniforms, parachutes etc. Make offer war ration book four with coupons used in bethlehem pa. The office of price administration opa was in charge of rationing consumer goods such as sugar, coffee, shoes, household appliances, and other goods during world war ii.
This book of stamps or coupons help the driver keep track of rationed fuel. Rationing was an attempt to keep prices low and to give everyone a chance to get scarce items. Vintage 25 opa red point tokens war ration book no. Ration books were exceedingly valuable to american consumers during the war, and people even carried them in special holders to keep them safe. World war ii put a heavy burden on us supplies of basic materials like food, shoes, metal, paper, and rubber. Our newest from the vault item is a meat ration token from world war ii produced by the canadian government for the second round of meat rationing that occurred between 9 september 1945 and 26 march 1947. Canadian war ration books food rationing in canada 1942. Food rationing during world war 2 primary homework help. Interesting question, since i have some as family heirlooms, meaning they are not for sale. War bond stamp book from world war ii prev next during both world wars, treasury realized that selling bonds to the poorest americans was good for the war effort because it helped to reduce inflation and tie the interests of a wide swath of the public to that of the national government. Every american was issued a series of ration books during the war.
Each stamp was worth 1 lb of sugar and was given a designed two week period during. Shortly after the commencement of world war two, rationing was introduced in canada on january 24, 1942, to limit the use of imported food and to free up supplies for the military and their allies. Ration books notice the dates these ration books were issued to doris and montague corri. Specialized private collectors may pay a little more for unused books in mint condition. The army and navy were growing, as was the nations effort to aid its allies overseas. Civilians still needed these materials for consumer goods as well. Antique world war ii ration books are not rare,antiques expert larry cox answers readers questions about world war ii ration books, blakely china and commemorative coins. Collection consists of ration coupons, stickers, permits, and certificates for tires, bicycles, typewriters, sugar, shoes, fuel oil, gasoline, and food which were issued by the office of price administration between 19421946. It contains four pages of point stamps, similar to the point stamps in war ration book 2, though slightly different in design and printed in brown ink. The war ration stamps are very common and the demand for them in the collectors circle is not very high. Digital collection wwii war ration book 4 american centuries. Records from war ration books for genealogy world war two. Find out more about what this space is all about here.
The amount of gasoline you received during world war ii depended on whether your job was essential to the war effort. Get the best deals on war ration book when you shop the largest online. War ration stamps were a common item, and they are not in high demand as a collectible item, making their value fairly low. Make offer world war ii 1943 ration book four wstamps pennsylvania d. This new ration book, replacement for present books when their stamps are used up, will be distributed during the early summer. Each family member was issued a ration book and the family pooled all the stamps to purchase the items they needed. There are many forms of rationing, and in western civilization people experience some of them in daily life without. What you need to know about rationing in the second world.
War ration book four with coupons used in bethlehem pa. Each family member was issued a ration book and the family pooled all the stamps to purchase the items they needed, or could get, that particular week with the stamps. Guide to the world war ii ration coupon collection, 1942. The paper stubs, or stamps, in each ration book purchased rationed consumer goods and foods.
World war ii gasoline ration stamps and mileage card, grosse. The office of price administration used opa stamps, coins and chits for rationing. Each stamp was illustrated with a military symbol such as a naval ship, airplane, tank, gun, horn of plenty or. The first ration book was introduced in the us in 1942, with people receiving their first one on may 4 th the same year. They were coupon books for goods rationed during world war ii. Rubber was the first commodity rationed followed by gasoline and foodstuff such as sugar, coffee, meats butter, canned goods, and shoes and clothing. This weeks questions are about ration books distributed during world war ii. Learn more about rationing for the war effort during world war ii with research starters at the national wwii museum. Opas were used by retailers to give change back for food bought with ration stamps. Across the country 8000 rationing boards were created to administer these restrictions. Clothing rationing was introduced in 1941 and lasted eight years. Initially used to ration sugar, coupons were later designated for other products. Guide to the world war ii ration coupon collection, 19421946.
I was given 6 war ration books with most of the stamps still in them. Great savings free delivery collection on many items motor fuel ration book for sale ebay. World war ll ration book printable pdf teaching history. A person could not buy a rationed item without also giving the grocer the right ration stamp. Ration book four was printed in red, blue and green. The ration books contained removable stamps good for certain rationed items, like sugar, meat, cooking oil, and canned goods. A common ration book fraud was the ration books of the dead being kept and used by the living. Meat was the last item to be derationed and food rationing ended completely in 1954.
Once a persons ration stamps were used up for a month. My grandmother recently died peacefully at 95, and while my sisters and i were. As with such items as tea, coffee, sugar and butter, there was the necessity to ration meat and set prices during the war years. During the second world war, you couldnt just walk into a shop and buy as much sugar or butter or meat as you wanted, nor could you fill up your car with gasoline whenever you liked. Americans also coped with rationing and coupon books by engaging in a widespread system of bartering. I try to guide readers to resources for them to determine the value of the items that they own. Throughout the 1940s every man woman and child in britain owned ration books of coupons that had to be used to obtain food and clothing. Bread, which was never rationed during wartime, was put on the ration in july 1946. World war ii ration books, 194345 collection information biographical sketch scope and content note cataloging information processed by emily castle august 2006 manuscript and visual collections department william henry smith memorial library indiana historical society 450 west ohio street indianapolis, in 462023269. By 1942 many other foodstuffs, including meat, milk, cheese, eggs and cooking fat were also on the ration. Used 29 diff pcs collection w mm wwii opa red point ration used tokens opa29. War ration books and tokens were issued to each american family, dictating how much gasoline, tires, sugar, meat, silk, shoes, nylon and other items any one.
Civilians first received ration books war ration book number one, or the sugar book on 4 may 1942, through more than 100,000 schoolteachers, pta groups, and other volunteers 7. Pricing depends on rarity, and they get more value, the more provenance you can document tying it to particular families, particular persons, and so on. Jun 24, 2019 interesting question, since i have some as family heirlooms, meaning they are not for sale. Civilians first received ration books war ration book number one, or the sugar book on 4 may 1942,11 through more than 100,000 schoolteachers, pta groups, and other volunteers. Make offer world war ii 1943 ration book four wstamps pennsylvania b. Jan 11, 20 friday at auction finds is readers questions day. Vintage wwii ration books with leather wallet and opa red points. On august 15, 1945, world war ii gas rationing was ended on the west coast of the united states. Coupons and rationing during world war ii dealhack. The point value of all rationed foods will be published and posted in each store at the beginning of each ration period. World war ii opa red point ration tokens wwii, rare mm. Shortages of essential war materials such as rubber, gasoline, and sugar were initially anticipated, but soon rationing grew to.
I have all four books, the first one only has three stamps left, book 2 is empty, book 3 has three full pages and one page that is only missing three stamps, book four has one full page of green stamps, five red stamps, nine blue stamps loose, 34 black spare stamps attached, with three more. My grandmother recently died peacefully at 95, and while my sisters and i were going through old boxes in. In the late 1940s the conservative party exploited and incited growing public anger at rationing, scarcity, controls, austerity and government bureaucracy. Rationing began on 8th january 1940 when bacon, butter and sugar were rationed. Unfollow world war 2 ration books to stop getting updates on your ebay feed. Each stamp authorized a purchase of rationed goods in the quantity and time designated, and the book guaranteed each family its fair share of goods made scarce, thanks to the war. Of the 180,000,000 printed, 123,000,000 were issued. Rationing of food lasted for 14 years and ended on july 4, 1954. Brief history opa stands for office of price administration tokens replaced the green ration stamps for processed food on feb 20, 1944 stopped being issued in 1945 used to ration retail items during the end of wwii. Wwii ration books provide name, address, age, occupation, and even height and weight. World war ii gasoline ration stamps and mileage card. This article may feature affiliate links to amazon or other companies, and purchases made via these links may earn us a small commission at no additional. To conserve rubber and gasoline, a countrywide speed limit of 35miles per hour was implemented. A difficult time for the united states us rationing of.
It was not until the early 1950s that most commodities came off the ration. Drivers received a windshield sticker and ration coupons for gasoline. Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. War bond stamp book from world war ii museum of american. The items rationed included canned goods, meats, sugar, coffee, tires, gas and more. The opa accepted ration book applications and issued ration books, from which consumers tore out stamps in order to purchase food and other supplies at grocery stores. Lot of 54 world war ii red and blue point tokens opa. Canadian war ration books food rationing in canada 19421947. Get the best deals on wwii ration book when you shop the largest online selection at. Ever wondered how much food a person was entitled to during world war two. Ration stamps became a kind of currency with each family being issued a war ration book. Tokens used for rationing during world war ii there are 30 different red tokens and 24 blue ones. Baaki says while they dont have a high monetary value, they are an interesting piece of.
Prefix fnfy war ration book fours are harder to find than the suffix books and are beginning to command a premium. What is the value of world war 2 ration books with. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is ones allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time. War ration books were produced by the united states office of price administration in 1942 when united states officially entered the second world war. To meet this surging demand, the federal government took steps to conserve crucial supplies, including establishing a rationing.
Rationing was regulated by the office of price administration and ration books holding stamps used for purchasing goods were distributed to all citizens. Wwii war ration 1942 opa grocery store display sign low point food blank red. What is the value of world war 2 ration books answers. War ration books and tokens were issued to each american family, dictating how much gasoline, tires, sugar, meat, silk, shoes, nylon and other items any one person could buy. Opa coins commonly called opas were used for change for food.
Search this index of over 11210 wartime records with images. War ration book one ration coupons on the home front. Buy motor fuel ration book and get the best deals at the lowest prices on ebay. They had to register and buy their food from their chosen shops.