Tag: wwii

The United States Federal Office of Price Administration (OPA) began its first rationing program to support WWII efforts on this day in 1941, limiting the number of tires any automobile driver could own to five. This included the existing tires on any vehicle already owned by a driver. Originally designed as a consumer protection agency to stabilize prices and rents to prevent unwarranted increases, the OPA shifted its mission to limiting purchases of certain goods once WWII broke out. Aside from tires, this included the rationing of cars, metal, typewriters, bicycles and food, among other items. Essential drivers could apply for a certificate to purchase new tires through an OPA program. Vehicles deemed as essential included transport trucks for foods or fuels, public transportati...

On this day in 1942, 17 states in the eastern United States began gas rationing at the order of the Office of Price Administration, as the effort to preserve materials for World War II ramped up. Gasoline was not the only commodity being rationed. Rubber was the first material to have a rationing program initiated by the OPA, in part due to the Japanese invasion of the Dutch East Indies, which cut off major rubber supplies to the US. Tires for wartime vehicles were a necessity, which meant non essential drivers had limited access to new or used tires for their personal vehicles. Various levels of gas stamps were issued, based on levels of importance. Your average motorists would likely have been issued issued an “A” sticker for their windshield, which allowed for the purchase of up...