There were many Canadian women who did not spend the war years in uniform or coveralls, instead opting for the traditional role of homemaker. They saw their role as keeping families together and protecting the home front and the Canadian way of life. This was an unusually difficult and stressful job in wartime, seeing sons and husbands sent overseas and dealing with shortages and rationing at home.
Rationing was not exclusive to Canadians; it was being felt all across Europe. Beginning in 1942 food and gasoline were rationed in Canada to ensure each family received a fair share of items in short supply. More than 11 million ration books were issued, to be turned in when items were purchased. Typical items that were on the ration list included meat and butter. Imported staples like sugar, coffee and tea were particularly difficult to obtain. The homemaker had to become a savvy consumer when planning meals for her family. Radio programming by the Dominion Department of Agriculture guided women on how to make do with less and persuaded them to can their own food, a challenge given the short supply of metal. In addition, housewives were encouraged to make their own butter from milk and restaurants observed meatless Tuesdays and Fridays. Realizing that rationing food could lead to vitamin deficiencies, strains of yeast rich in vitamin B1 were developed, allowing white bread to be “enriched.”
Gasoline was rationed in April of 1942 and the use of car pools and public transit rose. Coupons were offered to allow car pool drivers extra gas rations. Tires, though, could not be purchased unless one could prove that driving was essential.
As a result of rationing, luxury items became very scarce. Civilians waited outside stores to purchase whatever liquor was available, at high prices. By mid-1941, silk was no longer imported, so women rushed to purchase all the remaining seamed silk stockings, the fashionable hosiery of the 1940s. When supplies ran out, resourceful women knitted Victory stockings from yarn and small filaments of silk, or created the illusion of stockings by lining the back of their legs with an eyebrow pencil.
Consumers were told to “Use it Up, Wear it Out, Make it Do or Do Without.” Canadian men and women continued to meet the challenges of rationing in creative and resourceful ways throughout the duration of the War.
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Consumer News Booklets, produced by the Consumer Branch of the Wartime Prices and Trade Board, were distributed to provide advice and tips to help housewives with rationing during the War. August 31, 1942. © Doon Heritage Crossroads, Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Kitchener, Ontario
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The Wartime Prices and Trade Board published these ration book tip sheets in the local newspapers. c. 1940s. © Doon Heritage Crossroads, Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Kitchener, Ontario -
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