WWII Gas Ration Stamps

[55rab]

These items are what I believe to be some sort of registration or I.D. card and gas ration stamps.

 

Can anyone confirm or share additional information.

 

Thanks - RichB

[55rab]

close-up

[Jason G]

Rich:

 

 

While I can't see the registration too well, the stamps are in fact gas ration stamps. You used them every time you bought gas, and they were based on a letter system. The rationing wasn't used to save gas, it was used to save tire rubber. Civilians had to do a tire inventory before they got a ration book, surplus tires had to be turned in.

 

Here's a great little site that should tell you everything you want to know!

 

http://tvh.bfn.org/autos.html

[siege1863]

I direct you to my rather detailed overview of rationing pinned at the top of this Homefront section of the forum.

 

Just one correction. The rationing of gas had nothing to do with saving rubber. A gas shortage was created due to the conversion of consumer fuels to aviation fuels, etc.; increased demand for use by the military; the need for more tankers and railroad tank cars to move these aviation fuels across country and to the theaters; and the loss of many tankers to enemy submarines and planes. True, rubber was rationed because much of the supply was cut off by Japanese expansion in the Pacific, but the need for tire inspection was to get more efficient milage from the gas being consumed. It also added to the life of the tires themselves.

[Jason G]

I direct you to my rather detailed overview of rationing pinned at the top of this Homefront section of the forum.

 

Just one correction. The rationing of gas had nothing to do with saving rubber. A gas shortage was created due to the conversion of consumer fuels to aviation fuels, etc.; increased demand for use by the military; the need for more tankers and railroad tank cars to move these aviation fuels across country and to the theaters; and the loss of many tankers to enemy submarines and planes. True, rubber was rationed because much of the supply was cut off by Japanese expansion in the Pacific, but the need for tire inspection was to get more efficient milage from the gas being consumed. It also added to the life of the tires themselves.

 

My humblest apologies...I should have looked RIGHT HERE LOL. I knew I'd seen something on this before, done well, and couldn't find it. That's what I get for not 'looking up'.

 

Mea culpa.

[Homefrontguy]

I wanted to add some information to what has been posted. Gas shortages were felt in the US prior to our entry into the war in 1941. More than 90% of the oil that was refined on the East Coast arrived via tanker and much of that was being either diverted to England or was sitting at the bottom of the Atlantic courtesy of the German Navy. As Siege 1863 mentioned in his fine expose on ratioing, once the US entered the war and the demand for aviation fuel greatly increased rationing became necessary. The OPA, Office of Price Administration, found it necessary to ration gas after setting ceiling prices on gas to curb inflation due to a decline in supply. Here is a key to tell you how the above pictured gas stamps were used. You will also see punchcards that were used prior to the stamps, these were discontinued because the OPA couldn't keep track of how much gas was being used so they went to coupons which allowed for better record keeping. On a side note, civilian tires were very difficult to find after 1942 due to the rubber shortage caused by the Japanese control of Southeast Asia. There are great images of spare tires chained to the garage wall for security. There is a Warner Brothers cartoon from the war era that shows an automobile accident and an ambulance arrives and the emergency responders get out of the ambulance and run to the car with a strecher and proceed to gather the tires and leave the driver. Classic!

 

A - Stamps - East Coast First and then the West Coast

Depending on the time theese were good for either 3, 4 or six gallons

 

B, B-1, B-2 - Interior of the United States for 2 gallons

 

C, C-1, C-2 - East and West Coast and North West Interior for three gallons

 

B-3, B-8, C-3, C-8 same as letters above but for eight gallons

 

D Motorcycle at 1.5 gallons

 

E Non - Highway 1 Gallon

 

R Non - Highway 5 Gallon

 

T Transport 5 Gallons

 

Jim