Figure 1.--Here a boy in Washington, D.C. tosses a rubber ball into a collection center at a Georgia Avenue filling station (June 1942). It was near where we lived during the War. Source: Library of Congress. USF 34-100173-E.

The U.S. Government after Pearl Harbor asked Americans to salvage and collect a long list of materials that coud be used for the war effort. The materials included paper, aluminum, copper, iron and steel, tin, rubber, silk stockings, and cooking fat. Some of these materials like rubber and silk were needed because the Japanese had cut off the supply by their rapid advance through Southeast Asia. Given the need for alumininum for aircraft production, drives were launched for old pots. One of the most serious raw material crises was rubber. The Japanese offensive in the first months of the War seized Southeat Asia which had been the major supplier of rubber. Government action requisitioned nearly the entire stock of rubber and tires. It became virtully impossible to buy tires--including bicycle and tricycle tires. Drives were launched for old tires. Major efforts were also made to expand production in Brazil and West Africa. In the end the problem was resolved by a crash progeam to create an entire new industry--synthetic rubber. Another interesting material was cooking fat. This might not seem like a critical national material. There are, however, many industrial uses for fats. Fat is the a base for soap. Coconut oil and palm oil are probably the most important oils used for sop, but other fats can be used as well. Fats are also used to produce candles, paints, varnishes, leather, artificial rubber, polishes, waxes, carbon paper, salves, insecticides, lubricants, cosmetics, drugs, dyes, petroleum, and synthetic resin. The reason for the drives for cooking fat, especially du ring the early phase of the war, was that glycerin in fat is an key ingredient in explosives.

Rubber

One of the most serious raw material crises was rubber. The Japanese offensive in the first months of the War seized Southeat Asia which had been the major supplier of rubber. Government action requisitioned nearly the entire stock of rubber and tires. The situation was aggrevated when five Firestone mills in Fall River, Massachusetts burned. It became virtully impossible to buy tires--including bicycle and tricycle tires. Gasoline was rationed, rubber tires were impossible to obtain. And boys were unabler to fins seneakers which had runner soles. Rubber was one of the most serious problems the American war ecinomy faced. President Roosevely appointed a committee toi addess the problem (Bernard Baruch, Harvard President James B. Corant, and MIT President Karl T. Compton. There answer was: 1) nation-wide gas tationing, 2) a 35 mile-per-hour speed limit, and 3) expansuion of synthetic peoduction. Drives were launched for old tires. The drives became a nation-wide effort. Headlines like 'F.R. asks for scrap rubber'. And people responded in large numbers. . Collection centers were set up and massive pioles of old tires soon appeared. Major efforts were also made to expand production in Brazil and West Africa. In the end the problem was overcome by a crash progeam to create an entire new industry--synthetic rubber. Supplies were, however, tight throughout the War and even for a couple years after the War. People also came up with temprary repolacemnents.

Metal

World War II was an industrial war. And metals were needed to build the weapons that won the War. The shortage of rubber was the most serious impediment to the Allied war effort, but metals of all kinds were needed in huge quantities. Building tanks, ships, planes, and other weapons required massive amounts of metals, more than any other war in history. An Army Sherman M-4 tank required more than 20 tons of metal. A Navy battleship needed more than 900 tons. And building the world's largesr air foirce meant that aluminum would be needed in unprecedented quantities. Thus the Government after Pearl Harbor either cut off the supply of metal to the consumer economy or strictly rationerd it. Every thing from barbed wire to farm equipment was rationed. Kids were unable to get bicycles, tricycles, and pedal cars, both because of the metal and the rubber. Expanding mine production took time. And increasing imports meant thast ships had to be built which also took time. There was metal that was immediately available. One estimate suggests that 1.5 million tons of scrap lay useless on U.S. farms. And there were also large large quantities in the cities as well. The Goiverment urged Americans to turn in scrap metal for recycling, and schools and community groups like the Scouts across the country held scrap metal drives. Celebrities pitched in to help promote these drives. The metals that could be obtained through scrap drives included aluminum, copper, iron, nickel, steel, and tin. Given the need for alumininum for aircraft production, drives were launched for old pots. Cans and even tin foil was collected. People saved tin foil from gum wrappers. Often they made tin foil balls which were taken to the collection sites. A shortage of nickel developed. The Victory Key campaign was launched as some keys (especially Yale and Corbin) contained large quantities of nickel needed by the Navy. Americans got caught up in the partiotic feeling and sometimes brought historic cannons or ceven mounuments to the collection sites that after the War they wished they had saved.

Animal Fats

Another interesting material was cooking fat. This might not seem like a critical national material. There are, however, many industrial uses for fats. Fat is the a base for soap. Coconut oil and palm oil are probably the most important oils used for soap, but other fats can be used as well. Fats are also used to produce candles, paints, varnishes, leather, artificial rubber, polishes, waxes, carbon paper (once an indesmsible office supply), salves, insecticides, lubricants, cosmetics, drugs, dyes, petroleum, and synthetic resin. The reason for the cooking fat, drives especially during the early phase of the war, was that glycerin in fat is an key ingredient in explosives. Glycerine produced from fat also had a range of medical and surgical uses. The Federal Government created the American Fat Salvage Committee to convince housewives to save their excess fat rendered from cooking and donate it to produce explosives. Houswives were incouraged to bring what ever fat they collected back to their butcher. There were also school drives. Houswives were instructed to fry out and strain chunks of fat. Minnie Mouse and Pluto were recruited for a movie theater cartoon to promote the drive. One pound of fat was said tp contained sufficient glycerin to make about a pound of explosives. It took 350 pounds of fat to fore one 12 inch naval gun shell. Not all housewives participated, but about half did. Cooking (meaning saturated) fats were not seen as a health risk at the time. They were used in cooking and for such purposesea as seasoning greens. And once rationing was introduced, some housewives fid not want to turn over fats. The plan was that once a pound or more was collected, the fat was to be delivered to any one of 0.25 million participating butchers and retail establishments. Some 4,000 frozen food plants then turned them over to the Army. The housewife got 4 cents a pound for the fat When lard and butter began to be rationed (December 1943), the government began offering two ration points per pound. The ffort like much of the collection programs was nost important as a morale boosting effort. The types of explosives made with collected fats were not of major importance to the war effort. America had the resources to manufacture the explosives needed. Keeping of morale on the home font was important.

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Silk

The Japanese cut off the supply of silk which was needed for psrachuttes. America was building the largest air force in the world and thus parachuttes were vneeded. In addition the Army began training airborn troops.

Created: 9:27 AM 5/29/2011
Last updated: 11:44 PM 4/21/2016