State of Oregon: World War II (2024)

Drumming Up New Ways to Borrow Money

New Tax Laws Bump up Revenue

With the passage of key legislation, such as the Revenue Act of 1942, the federal government made historic changes to tax policy. For one thing, the government began to collect taxes from a greatly expanded number of people. Fewer than 4 million people filed taxable individual income tax returns in 1939 but more than 42 million people filed in 1945. The amount of individual income taxes grew even more, from one billion dollars in 1939 to 19 billion dollars in 1945. This was helped by average annual earnings for full-time workers that nearly doubled during the period. Many of these people were earning between $1,500 and $10,000 a year and because of their numbers, they would pay most of the individual taxes. However, those with higher incomes were expected to chip in a higher percentage of their personal income since they were "few in number and already subject to tax rates running from 25% at $10,000 to 90% at $1,000,000."Footnote 1

National Strategies for Selling Bonds

While greatly increased tax revenue helped fund the war, the government still needed to borrow more than half of the money for wartime expenses. Many worried about the size of the new deficits resulting from the massive expansion of borrowing. The largest deficit during the depths of the Depression in the 1930s, even with all the New Deal programs, was about 4billion dollars a year while during the war these numbers skyrocketed to about 50 billion dollars each year. Still, after raising taxes, the government saw nochoice but to move forward with huge bond sales. Many advisors urged President Roosevelt to force individual citizens to buy bonds. They argued that compulsory bond purchases would avoid some of the vicious excesses of World War I during which society stigmatized those who failed to buy bonds, even to the point of painting their homes and barns yellow. In the end, proponents of voluntary purchases won the day, arguing that it would "give people an opportunity to do something" more for the war effort.Footnote 3

The brightest stars in Hollywood were recruited and responded by participating in promotional efforts. Film star Hedy Lamarr offered to kiss anyone who purchased $25,000 worth of war bonds. Her press agent reported that one buyer was so overwhelmed by the anticipation of the kiss that he fainted before he could collect. Singer Kate Smith got pledges from listeners for almost 40 million dollars worth of bonds during a 16-hour network radio marathon. Auctions brought in big pledges to buy war bonds too. The stockings that had graced actress Betty Grable's famous legs fetched top dollar as did the horse shoes from Triple Crown horse racing phenomenon Man o' War. Meanwhile, Gimble's bargain basem*nt auctioned off stage, radio, and film star Jack Benny's beloved, but screechy $75 violin for one million dollars. Imaginary heroes joined the effort, including comic book stars Superman and Joe Palooka.Footnote 5 ( Watch Bugs Bunny cartoon for a bond drive campaign -via youtube.com)

Oregon Bond Sales Efforts

While huge rallies with stars such as Bing Crosby or John Wayne made the headlines, much of the local work of bond drives fell to volunteers going door to door making sales. Officials had plenty of advice beyond the common patriotic pitches for winning in the sales game. Canvassers were urged to get the name right: "If there is a 'foreign' or unusual name be sure you know how to pronounce it (when in doubt ask a next door neighbor)." Volunteers should also be able to "size up" or "estimate what amount a given household should be asked to buy." If canvassers saw a "service flag" (denoting a family member in the armed services) in the window, they should ask the parents to talk about it and then say: "'I know you have been backing them up by buying War Bonds, but in this War Loan we are all trying to dig a little deeper and buy extra bonds.'"Footnote 7

Bond booths were another way to sell war bonds and women were key to the effort. The booths were kiosks set up in prominent locations with plenty of foot traffic such as hotel or theater lobbies. The booths required a large number of volunteers to keep them fully staffed as was the case in Portland during the Fifth War Loan Drive in 1944. A total of 561 volunteers worked in 13 hotel, theater, and store booths including 64 who sold war bond stamps at the Multnomah Hotel and 53 who work the booth at the Benson Hotel while 52 staffed the New Heathman Hotel booth. The booth at "Woolworth's Five and Dime Store" kept 65 volunteers busy while 14 worked the Meier & Frank booth and a dozen sold bond stamps at the "Penny's [sic] Store."Footnote 9

Local Experiences

Local communities in Oregon rose to the challenge of financing the war with enthusiasm, but results were mixed as a 1945 report on the seventh war loan bond drive by the Department of Treasury's Portland office revealed. Counties competed with each other to reach and exceed their sales quotas. Baker County did exceptionally well by reaching 116.4% of their "E bond quota." Along with house to house solicitations, the local "Soroptomists took charge of bond booths during presentation of 'This is the Infantry,' and Venture Club girls sold bonds through the crowd." In an example of the levels of competition, the Oregon City Public Library "won first place in the Library War Bond Campaign with a comfortable lead over the Woodburn County Library (second), and the Deschutes County Library (third)." In Seaside about 80 grandmothers bought bonds in order to have seats at a breakfast attended by a national figure. Columbia County only reached 76.4% of its quota but officials were understanding since so many of its residents commuted to defense jobs in the Portland where they had bond purchases deducted from their paychecks.Footnote 11

Other counties reported a variety of experiences with bond drives. For example, the Elks Lodge in Deschutes County gave two $50 bonds to the girls selling the most during the drive while another group in the county staged a "charm contest" to raise support. Volunteers in Douglas County discovered the effectiveness of a "bond wagon" according to one participant:

Hood River County proudly sold more in the national "Bonds for Babies" campaign than any Oregon county except Multnomah. Jefferson County officials praised the "promotion by the Warm Springs Indians, many of whom lost sons or brothers or husbands in the World War." Meanwhile, the Beta Sigma Phi organization in The Dalles "popped stove pipe hats like Uncle Sam's on their heads, and canvassed the town in the evenings with a sound truck." The members did so well that they raised 250,000 dollars and helped Wasco County go way "over the top" of its quota at 169.5%.Footnote 13

"Straight Talk About the 6th War Loan" Drive Brochure, U.S. Treasury Dept., 1943. Folder 18, Box 15, Defense Council Records, OSA.

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