During World War II, the U.S. rapidly mobilized its economy for war production, transforming various industries to supply the military with vast amounts of arms and equipment. Millions of Americans, including over 6 million women, joined the workforce, with significant government investment in factories and wartime production coordination. The war effort also stimulated a cultural shift and imposed rationing measures, all contributing to a robust homefront morale and economic growth despite the national debt increasing significantly during this period.

1. AMERICA IN WWII
THE HOMEFRONT

2. MOBILIZATION FOR WAR
 U.S. had the world’s 17th
largest military in
1939
• Mobilized itself for total war production almost
overnight once the nation entered the war
 Immediate conversion of peacetime industries
into war production facilities
• Toy companies manufactured compasses
• Typewriter companies made rifles
• Piano factories made airplane motors
• Ford ceased producing cars & began turning out
tanks and bombers

3. MILITARY BUILD-UP
U.S. became Allies biggest armaments
supplier
1940-1945: U.S. war plants produced
millions of planes, tanks, jeeps, & guns
Shipbuilders produced thousands of
ships
Jobless sank to fewer than 700,000
Earnings nearly doubled
• Typical factory worker $25  $47
• Working overtime & brought home fat checks

4. END OF THE WAR NUMBERS
 From 1940 until Japanese surrender, U.S. produced:
• More than 300,000 aircraft
• 86,333 tanks
• 12.5 million rifles
• 107 aircraft carriers
• 352 destroyers
 By 1945, produced more than twice the war supplies of
Germany, Italy, and Japan combined
 At war’s end – military orders totaled $330 billion
 National debt increased from $49 billion in 1941 to
$259 billion in 1945

5. MIGRATION
4 million people left their homes for
other states with industry jobs
• Gulf & Pacific coasts (shipbuilding)
• Midwest & West (factories)
 Government spent billions of dollars to build
factories & military bases
 Create industrial areas that will remain after WWII

6. FARMERS
 Produced enough
food to supply
American people &
Allies overseas

7. GOVERNMENT
EXPANSION
 Office of War Mobilization
• Coordinated all government
agencies involved in
producing & distributing
civilian goods
 War Production Board
• Directed conversions of
existing factories to wartime
production
• Supervised building of new
plants
• Assigned raw materials
• Coordinated production &
distribution of consumer
goods

8. WOMEN GO TO WORK
 More than 6 million
women, half of whom
had never earned
money before join
workforce
 Government set up
daycare centers for
women whose
husbands were serving
in the war

9. ROSIE THE RIVETER
 Publicity campaign to
encourage women to get
jobs
• More than 5 million women
joined the labor force during
the war
 Showed that it was NOT
unfeminine to work &
would make an important
contribution to war effort
 1945 – average woman’s
pay still less than 2/3 that of
male

10. SELECTIVE TRAINING & SERVICE
ACT
 1940 – draft starts before
attack on Pearl Harbor
• 1st
peacetime draft
• All men between the ages of
21-37 (extended to 18-37)
 16 million men & women
served during WWII
• 2/3 draftees
• 300,000 women
• 72,000 claimed “conscientious
objection”

11. WOMEN IN THE MILITARY
 WAACS, WASPS, WAVES,
SPARS, & Marines permit
women to join
 Serve as nurses, office
workers, drivers, and
ferried planes
 Freed men from active
duty
 ANC & NNC – tended to
wounded soldiers
overseas

12. RAISING MONEY
 Government increased
amount of money
Americans had to pay in
income taxes
• Included most middle- &
lower- income groups for
1st
time
 War Bonds
• Sold to control inflation

13. BEGINNING OF NATIONAL
DEBT
1941 = $49 billion; 1945 = $259 billion
2/5 was pay as we go; 3/5 borrowed
New Deal + WWII = “warfare welfare”
state

14. OFFICE OF WAR
INFORMATION
Controlled the flow of news at home
Radio played wartime musical hits
• “Bebop” music becomes popular
• “White Christmas”
• Ban certain programs, sound effects, sirens,
etc.

15. PROMOTING THE WAR
 Government encouraged media
to increase morale after
unsuccessful start
 Movies
• Movie stars advertised war bonds
• Traveled overseas to entertain the
troops
• War movies produced –
romanticized American & other
Allied soldiers
 Stereotyped Japanese, Germans, and
Italians

16. PROPOGANDA
 Comic books with
patriotic themes
 Slogans “Kick ‘Em in
the Axis” became
popular

17. CELEBRITIES IN THE SPOTLIGHT
 A long list of actors
fought in the war
• Paul Newman
• Kirk Douglas
• Mel Brooks
• Ed McMahon
• Walter Matthau
 Pinup Girls
• Betty Grable
• Rita Hayworth

18. CELEBRITY ENTERTAINERS
 Bob Hope
• Assembled celebrities to
entertain the American
troops under the USO
 Glenn Miller joined Air
Force and entertained
the troops with
orchestra
 Frank Capra – Why We
Fight Films

19. FAMOUS POLITICIANS
 Dwight Eisenhower
 John Kennedy
 Lyndon Johnson
 Richard Nixon
 Gerald Ford
 Jimmy Carter
 Ronald Reagan
 George Bush
 Bob Dole

20. PATRIOTISM
 Plant victory gardens
 Buy war bonds
 Display window
banners
 Recycle scrap metal,
fabric, and old tires
 Cut back on travel
 Begin singing “Star
Spangled Banner” at
beginning of all ball
games

21. RATIONING – OFFICE OF
ECONOMIC STABILIZATION
 Reduced demand by
limiting what and how
much people could buy
 Cut civilian purchases
needed for war effort
• Gasoline, heating fuel,
tires, coffee, sugar, meat,
butter, canned goods
 Given ration coupon
books – distributed at
schools

22. RATION BOOKS
 “RED” Points – allowed 64
per month
• Meat, butter, fat, etc.
• Permitted people to buy about
2 lbs of meat per week
 “BLUE” Points – allowed 48
per month
• Processed foods
 Tags with prices and point
values found at the stores

23. WAR RATIONS BOOK

24. DEMAND FOR RATIONS
BOOK
 Government imposed a
national speed limit
• Average person entitled to 4
gallons per week
• People who needed cars for
work were given more
• No limit placed on those who
provided essential services,
such as doctors
 Large black market grew
with stolen and
counterfeited ration cards,
stamps & gas stickers

25. WAR ON THE
HOMEFRONT
 Behind each soldier
are hundreds of
civilian workers
 Depression was
over
 Full employment
was reality
 Confidence in
victory was strong