"Could This be You? - Don't Travel - Unless Your Trip Helps Win the War"
This propaganda poster, created by the U.S. Office of Defense Transportation, is a portrayal of how the U.S. Government urged citizens to not only ration goods, but also their traveling. The Government is essentially saying that traveling to visit your family, or even your job, is not important unless it "helps win the war."
Citation: U.S. Office of Defense Transportation. “Could This Be You? - Don't Travel - Unless Your Trip Helps Win the War.” Hennepin County Library Digital Collections. Accessed February 15, 2023. https://digitalcollections.hclib.org/digital/collection/p17208coll3/id/1542/rec/1.
Roosevelt Inspects U.S. Army Camps - 1943
This video is from 1943 and includes President Franklin D. Roosevelt inspecting the U.S. Marines at their Parris Island base in Port Royal, SC on April 14, 1943, the Maxwell Airfield (later known as an Air Force Base) in Montgomery, AL on the following day, and various other camps. The purpose of these inspections was to prove the soldiers were prepared for battle. Also seen in this video is footage of Navy aircraft carriers transporting army planes to the fighting fronts and clips from the Battle of Tunisia. The Battle of Tunisia, also known as the Tunisian Campaign, took place in North Africa and began in November 1942, and ended in May 1943. It was significant due to it being the first time American and British troops were deployed together in combat.
Citations:
“100 Facts About Parris Island.” Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island. Accessed February 15, 2023. https://www.mcrdpi.marines.mil/Centennial-Celebration/100-facts-about-Parris-Island/.
“April 14th, 1943 - FDR: Day By Day.” FDR. Accessed February 15, 2023. http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/daybyday/daylog/april-14th-1943/.
“Documents - Tunisia 1942-1943.” British Military History, September 5, 2020. https://tinyurl.com/British-Military-History.
“Tunisia, November 1942-May 1943.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Accessed February 15, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/event/World-War-II/Tunisia-November-1942-May-1943.
U.S. National Archives. “Roosevelt Inspects U.S. Army Camps - 1943.” YouTube. YouTube, September 15, 2009. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijdctVteGqo.
"The Gumps - Women at War"
This comic strip found in The Greenville News is a representation of conversations that may have taken place at this time regarding the topic of having one, or many, male family member(s) in the war effort. This comic could also be seen as a piece of propaganda pushing American citizens at home to "use their courage as strength" when thinking about loved ones at war.
Citation: Edson, Gus. “The Gumps - Women at War.” Newspapers.com, November 11, 1943. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118226373/the-gumps-women-at-war-comic/.
The following object description information includes basic elements from the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI). An additional notes field is included to list dates from the actual letter, envelope postmark locations, and any other identifying details.
Considering the time they were writing these letters, did John realistically think that Margaret could travel across the country to visit him, her boyfriend, without a parent or chaperone?
Also, would John have told Margaret not to come if her mother were to come with her?
"Wives of Service Men Have Tough Time Visiting Husbands: Travel in Dixie Is Taxing on Mates, They Reveal"
Published on November 6, 1943, this article in the Afro-American Newspaper discusses the issues that wives from New York City faced when visiting the camps their husbands were based at in the South.
Citation: "Wives of Service Men have Tough Time Visiting Husbands: Travel in Dixie is Taxing on Mates, they Reveal." Afro-American (1893-), Nov 06, 1943. https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/wives-service-men-have-tough-time-visiting/docview/531436983/se-2.
"Travel Rationing Reported Considered by ODT For 1944"
This short article published on November 18, 1943, in the Women's Wear Daily newspaper discusses the potential rationing of train travel for the following year, 1944.
Citation: "Travel Rationing Reported Considered by ODT for 1944." Women’s Wear Daily 67, no. 99 (Nov 18, 1943): 1. https://www.proquest.com/trade-journals/travel-rationing-reported-considered-odt-1944/docview/1654257304/se-2.