World War II Technology and The Pacific Northwest

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World War II had a major impact on technology and shaping of the Pacific Northwest. Schwantes (409) states “Even before the United States formally declared war on the Axis nations of Japan, Germany, and Italy in 1941, the Pacific Northwest experienced the impact of increased production for defense and aid to friendly nations already at war. The surprised Attack at Pearl Harbor rapidly accelerated that trend. Industries large and small produced ships, barges, aircraft, lumber and various kinds of wood products, metal, food, machinery, clothing, munitions and armaments.

(DVD Lecture 13) “Crucial conditions necessary to support Northwest war industries are the location on the Pacific Rim and cheap hydroelectric power created by the Grand Cooley and Bonneville dams.”

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Schwantes (409-411) further claims that the existence of Kaiser Shipyards for ship building production, the Boeing plant for aircraft manufacturing, and Alcoa were already in place before the war. Schwantes (411) states “Vital to the success of the aircraft industry were the region’s five new aluminum reduction plants-the first of which Alcoa opened near Vancouver in 1940 – and Bonneville and Vancouver dams, which supplied the cheap power necessary to convert alumina (aluminum oxide) into ingots of aluminum. Congress provided the Bonneville Power Administration more than $2 billion dollars to increase the generating capacity of the dams six fold between the years 1941-1945.” 

Schwantes (410-415) claim that the demographics in the Northwest changed by increased population growth. More of more of war time jobs were available here in the Northwest but the population growth created a major housing shortage. (DVD lecture 13) states that even though there were plenty of high paying jobs here in the Pacific Northwest, there still were housing shortages. Even if a person found a place to live, the homes were overcrowded and often had poor sanitation and garbage pileup. These problems also increased the number of rats carrying diseases. Schwantes (415) claims “An ordeal often as bad as finding housing or adequate medical care was getting to and from work. On some Seattle streets the traffic flows nearly doubled by late 1941, and when gasoline and tire rationing restricted automobile use in mid-1942, streetcars and buses labored under crushing passenger loads. Everyday shopping posed the challenge of standing in long checkout lines or doing without. Other by-products of massive social dislocation included increased juvenile delinquency, divorce, and prostitution.”

(DVD Lecture 13) “More than 50 army and navy bases where build here in the Pacific Northwest bring people from all over the United States into this region. Inflation was another key problem as a result of the war. There was a 74 percent inflation rate between 1939 and 1947.” 

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Several factors of innovation shaped the impact of social structure and economics in the Pacific Northwest as a result of technology and innovations. Schwantes (415) “In all the important industrial facilities of the Puget Sound area combined, women formed about one-fourth of the work force. Housewives without any work experienced or educational qualifications beyond a few years in grade school earned $200 to $250 a month at Boeing, at the shipyards, or as bus drivers. Day-care centers for the first time became a significant feature of urban life. Although women performed many jobs traditionally done by men, they rarely received the same pay. Their entry into the work force, moreover, was regarded as a temporary wartime expedient by most men-and by many women, too.”

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