World War II
was mercifully brought to an official close on September 2nd, 1945 after the
Japanese Empire surrendered. It is
difficult to remember, sometimes, that there was more going on in the world
during this period in addition to the most destructive conflict in history. Yet, life went on for people of the Home Front. Rationing was still in effect, despite the
cessation of hostilities with some coupons listed expiration dates reaching as
far in the future as "December 31."[1] In some cases however, rationing had already
been lifted, even prior to the end of the war.
Due in part, no doubt, to the writing on the wall regarding the sheer
inevitability of the Japanese defeat after the tragedies of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki.
One of the
primary substances that saw an early end to rationing, at least in Cincinnati,
was gasoline. Perhaps unsurprisingly,
due to the sudden influx of fuel into an economy that had been starved of its
presence since early 1942. Equally
unsurprising (in hindsight) was the uptick in traffic accidents caused by the
increasing number of drivers who had been confined to a lower speed limit and
fuel consumption over the previous several years. Consequently, when the city manager compared
the accidents caused in 1944 to 1945, his conclusion was simply that the
increasing number of accidents was "expected to continue."[2] Given that the rest of that section of the
paper was dedicated towards the collisions that had occurred over the past day,
it is a small wonder that a higher number of accidents relative to the previous
year were expected. Considering that the
war had just ended however, the problems caused by a few traffic incidents were
relatively minor indeed.
Editorial Staff. "Ration Table." Cincinnati Enquirer (1923-2009), September 02, 1945. 2. https://search-proquest-com.research.cincinnatilibrary.org/docview/1882844537?accountid=39387.
Editorial Staff. "Traffic Accidents Increase After the
End of Gas Rationing." Cincinnati
Enquirer (1923-2009), September 2, 1945. 13. https://search-proquest-com.research.cincinnatilibrary.org/docview/1882844537?accountid=39387.
[1]
Editorial Staff. "Ration Table." Cincinnati Enquirer (1923-2009), September
02, 1945. 2.
[2]
Editorial Staff. "Traffic Accidents Increase After the End of Gas
Rationing." Cincinnati Enquirer
(1923-2009), September 2, 1945.
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