Eighty years ago this week, the United States held its first War Loan Drive. The Second World War cost the United States $300 billion dollars, with the federal budget rising from $9 billion in 1939 to $98 billion in 1945. How was the nation to pay for that? Taxes were increased with an additional 5 percent Victory Tax. To assure payment, on June 10, 1943 the government approved the first automatic deduction of taxes ... Read Article

Eighty years ago, coffee rationing began in the United States. Although not necessary for survival—though that’s debatable—coffee has been a staple in the American diet since the Boston Tea Party, and coffee rationing was extremely unpopular. Why Coffee? During World War II, Latin America produced bumper crops of coffee beans, and those countries were Allies or neutral. However, all coffee came to America by se... Read Article

When World War II comes to Derby, Maine, wealthy Louise Cavendish decides to close her private town library to open a nursery for the children of factory workers. Avis Montgomery’s reading consists of magazine articles on How to Be the Perfect Housewife, but when her librarian brother goes to war, Avis takes his position. And when Louise unveils her plans to close the library, Avis impulsively founds the Blacko... Read Article

At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, the First World War came to an end. The Armistice was signed for the War to End All Wars, but peace was built on a shoddy foundation, and war returned, nastier than ever. The end of the Second World War brought the United Nations and the promise of rational negotiation and eternal peace. Instead the nuclear era introduced the tense decades of the Cold War, f... Read Article

When Gracie McNeil’s beloved Gran dies, Gracie is stunned to inherit the family home in Philadelphia – and her uncle is infuriated that he was bypassed. But this is Gracie’s chance to fulfill her dream of opening a yarn shop – and to overcome her lifelong history of failure. As Gracie is performing renovations on the house, she uncovers a mysterious door leading to a cellar. With the help of C... Read Article

They waded ashore in chest-deep water in Algeria and took shelter behind sand dunes. Snipers and strafing fighter planes aimed for them. They ate cold rations and dug slit trenches and dealt with fleas, mosquitoes, lice, and flies. And they were women. When I was researching nursing in the Mediterranean Theater (North Africa, Sicily, and Italy) in World War II, I was struck by the conditions these young women worked ... Read Article

Delia Vittoria doesn’t mind being her mother’s understudy at New York’s Academy of Music, but then her mother’s respiratory ailment thrusts Delia onto stage – and into the limelight. The new operatic diva takes New York society by storm, but will her newfound acclaim overcome the stigma of being the daughter of a woman of ill repute and an absent father, a child of divorce? Well-establis... Read Article

For the average American in World War II, the Victory Garden was a practical way to contribute to the war effort. Some 20 million Victory Gardens were planted (US population in 1940 was 132 million), and by 1943, these little plots produced 40 percent of all vegetables consumed in the US. It’s estimated that 9-10 million tons of vegetables were grown. The Need for Victory Gardens Wartime needs stretched agricul... Read Article

Although rationing was an important part of life in America during World War II, the US government was apprehensive about gasoline rationing. As a symbol of freedom of movement, the automobile represented everything American, and politicians feared riots and rebellion if they curtailed that freedom. Gasoline Shortage In early 1942, German U-boats ravaged Allied shipping off the US East Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico... Read Article

All of the restfulness of a lakeside retreat and none of the mosquitos! There’s nothing like a retreat in nature to refresh you. Getting away from work relieves you of the burden of stress you didn’t realize you carried. Spending time with loved ones reminds you why you love them. Fun activities revive a youthful sense of energy. And best of all, the beauty of God’s creation stirs the heart toward t... Read Article