THE MILITARIZATION OF THE PRAIRIE: SCRAP DRIVES, METAPHORS, AND THE "OMAHA WORLD-HERALD'S" 1942 "NEBRASKA PLAN"

In WW II, there was no nationwide shortage of scrap on the home front. In backyards, attics, barns, ditches, garages, and factory storage sheds across the country, all sorts of scrap material awaited transport and eventual conversion to arms. Yet the public's awareness of the scrap, and the nat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inGreat plains quarterly Vol. 27; no. 2; pp. 83 - 99
Main Author KIMBLE, JAMES J.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Lincoln THE CENTER FOR GREAT PLAINS STUDIES 01.04.2007
Center for Great Plains Studies
Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska Lincoln
Subjects
Activism
Competition
Contests
Counties
Factories
Government (Administrative Body)
Lead
Nebraska
Newspaper publishing
Prairies
Presidents
Propaganda
Publishing industry
Pulitzer prizes
Recycling
Resources
Statewide Planning
Steels
United States History
War
Weapons
World wars
Nebraska
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Summary:In WW II, there was no nationwide shortage of scrap on the home front. In backyards, attics, barns, ditches, garages, and factory storage sheds across the country, all sorts of scrap material awaited transport and eventual conversion to arms. Yet the public's awareness of the scrap, and the national willpower necessary to collect it, seemed to be missing. Among the many people who found themselves obsessed with the scrap problem in the summer of 1942 was Henry Doorly, the publisher of Nebraska's largest daily, the "Omaha World-Herald." In early July, Doorly read in his own newspaper about the scrap situation. Discussing the problem with his wife, Margaret Hitchcock Doorly, he realized that "while he could not do the job for the nation, he could at least do it in Nebraska, thereby setting an example for the nation." He began to draft plans for a statewide scrap drive, one that would eventually be nicknamed "the Nebraska plan."
ISSN:0275-7664
2333-5092