The War Effort
A Perley Thomas car is painted red, white, and blue over its standard green livery as part of an ad campaign to sell US War Bonds and Stamps. The car is operating on the Canal line, outside the CBD. Given the lady’s hat and that the gentlemen are in shirtsleeves, the photo was shot in the spring or summer. Unlike the modern Canal line, the stops for the original line were on the curb side of the streetcar, rather than inside the neutral ground. The photo is courtesy the New Orleans Public Library, and can be found in Ed’s book, New Orleans: The Canal Streetcar Line.
Streetcars have long been a good investment for advertisers, so for NOPSI to give up ad revenue to support the war was a financial sacrifice as well as an act of patriotism. The transit system was one of the many areas where folks on the homefront were making serious contributions to the war effort. With items such as gasoline and tires rationed, riding the streetcar to and from work and shopping made even more sense than usual.
On this, the 60th anniversery of the invasion of Europe (D-Day), CanalStreetCar.com would like to take this opportunity to thank both the veterans who risked (and sacrificed) their lives during World War II, as well as those back home who did whatever they could to fight tyranny.
