Chronology of Canadian Military History Canadian Military History, Colonial Period, New France, First Peoples, Seven Years War, French Indian War Canadian Military History, British North America, American Invasion, War of 1812, Dominion of Canada, Riel Rebellion, South African War Canadian Military History, World War 1 History, 1914-1918, Canadian Armed Forces, conscription Canadian Military History, World War 2, 1939-1945, Battle of the Atlantic, conscription, invasion, Dday, Normandy, Germany, axis, allies, Hong Kong, Dieppe 1946-today
Canada and the 
Second World War
The World Crisis
Canada goes to War
Canada at Britain's side
The Battle of the Atlantic
Canada's War at sea
The War comes to Canada
The Battle for Hong Kong
Disaster at Dieppe
The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
Bomber Command
The Royal Canadian Air Force
The Home Front
Conscription
The Italian Campaign
Canada at D-Day
The Normandy Campaign
Liberating Northwest Europe
Victory
The War against Japan
Forced Relocation: the Japanese-Canadian Story
Going Home
Counting the Cost
A Nation Transformed
The Home Front

THE HOME FRONT

1939-1945

The war effort seriously affected everyday life in Canada.

The War Measures Act, invoked in 1939, empowered Ottawa to take whatever measures the government believed necessary for the successful prosecution of the war. The federal government carefully managed the flow of information and, in 1941, imposed strict wage and price controls. Beginning in 1942, it rationed many commodities such as meat, sugar, coffee, gasoline, rubber and textiles.

In addition to those in military service or working in war industries or agriculture, millions of Canadians contributed to the ‘total’ war effort by volunteering with organizations such as the Red Cross, or participating in salvage campaigns, gathering everything from scrap metal to newsprint. Through it all, millions of Canadians, reading official casualty reports in the newspapers, worried daily about the fate of their friends and loved ones overseas.


THE HOME FRONT
NAC-PA- 116144


Canadian War Museum
1 Vimy Place
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0M8
1-800-555-5621