12/25/2011:
North Dakotans celebrated their fourth consecutive wartime Christmas on this date in 1944. Many families gathered to hear President Roosevelt’s address to the nation, broadcast as a prayer for peace. Fargo Salvage Chairman, Mrs. Howell, urged North Dakota families to save their Christmas wrapping paper and boxes, as “huge quantities of paper [were] needed to pack war supplies for shipment overseas.” Hearing that food rations would face tighter restrictions, families swamped the stores in Fargo, quickly buying out entire stocks of butter and sugar. The Big Red store on Broadway was only able to stay open two hours before supplies dwindled, and the following day, butcher shops were also quickly emptied. The war at home created a changed holiday atmosphere in North Dakota, as residents prayed for peace, salvaged paper, and rationed food for soldiers on the front.
Dakota Datebook written by Jayme L. Job
Sources:
The Fargo Forum and Daily Republican. Monday (Evening ed.), December 25, 1944: p. 1.
The Fargo Forum and Daily Republican. Tuesday (Evening ed.), December 26, 1944: p. 1.