Farming for the Front Lines

dairy products. Whereas the Great Depression created huge job shortages and surpluses of farm food, it seems like we could never grow enough. During World War two, food is a weapon. Don't waste it. Warrned a government issued poster. One hundred and forty million Americans had to be fed, and sixteen million of them had to be fed in base camps, on ships, and in small companies moving the front lines forward all over the world. They brought rations up to

us all the time, the eyes and the jeep. Many times the cooks are sent up to the fur line with ammunition and food. Sometimes they get caught in the broad All these people who are really reliant on us there. Welcome to Service Stories of Hunger and War, a production from My Heart Radio and Me your host, Jacqueline Reposo. One thing that can't escape us this season is how palpably the Great Depression shaped the early lives of our

World War Two veterans. We've heard them share stories about saving trolley fair for a five cent hot dog, about industrious parents cooking chicken feet and canning vegetables, and how grateful they were to have food at all. And so. Part of this fascinating historical puzzle is the shift from the Great Depression to war production on the home front.

As we sent food overseas to our allies before joining up in late nineteen forty one, farm production demands increased by thirty two percent, while simultaneously around two million men were leaving farm life, some to join the service and some because they could make far greater money working in other war production facilities. Such is the conundrum faced by our veteran today. Harold bud Long grew up in upstate

New York, the third generation of a farming family. Growing into adulthood at the start of the war, he walked away from owning his family farm to instead work his way up the production line at Curtis Wright, the largest state side aircraft manufacturer during this time. In some ways, farms flourished because of wartime needs, with the military a

major purchaser of flour, beef, butter, and the like. But then, as we heard in our last episode with William Walker, the Navy started reporting huge food shortages as if ferried food around the world, and victory gardens were encouraged to

help light in the civilian food load. With iron, rubber and steel waylaid for defense purposes, farmers couldn't get their hands on new machinery, and even as they increased wages from three dollars to five dollars to a whopping twelve dollars a day, they couldn't compete for workers with companies like Curtis. Bud remembers a starting salary of fifty cents an hour and once a huge paycheck of one hundred

and thirty seven dollars for one week. Bud's working for Curtis kept him denied by the Draft Board for a while. His accumulated engineering knowledge then made him eligible for the Air Corps, and, newly married, he tried to stay stateside working as long as possible. But eventually he was sent all over Europe, taking bomb sites out of planes and laying emergency airstrips. But speeds us through legendary campaigns like D Day, the Battle of the Bulge, and the Rhyan

Land in Germany. To keep him fed, it took farm hands, factories, navy ships, army trucks, and so many foot soldiers all along the way. And so now from Livingston County, New York, let's slow and sit with Harold but Long. My name is Harold B. Long. I was staff sergeant on an Ice Air Force. Growing up. We had a farm about five acres. We had two trackers and two teams of horses's during a pressure we appreciate that. We never act for food. We always had chickens. We had pigs, so

we always put your on pig a year. We always put your on half heart, so had feet. I always had a great big garden. We had a sager room. You know, I would you know you could run and slide on that thing because its sucking slippery, and said you got your chilk, slide around like that on there. And I can remember get Lauren looking out one of the seas the wagans lined up waiting to go see the Saga Rong. I like the horses, but I didn't

have no patience for him being a kid. Everything. I get ahold of the clip and I cut the tongue off, but the tracked to run. Dad used to get a technof and he said, you know that gas is expensive. Yeah, but Dad, I got it done and a half the time I had because I went to school. I'm a big family, seventh of the family. Mother used to pack a lunch for me. She always packed extra for that, apples and stuff. It was microwave and old freezers. She can the beef, beets, carrots. We made butter for a

while and that was a job. And making butter, I always had plenty to eat. I was drafted with MPN each side of me. I got down high school and I was the only child. This is thirty eight or you have no money in so many college. I work the farm. You have the farm, said dad. You want to work on daylight, the darkst noven days a week. You don't know if you're gonna have enough to pay the bills. Not for me. Was that a Sunday paper hiring for Curtis so I worked on salvage, worked on

P forties until I was drafted. I was trained what to call a m aircraft mechanics. I went to B School Medium Bomber, so I flew in twenty six as a flight engineer. They called that the little maker or the flying coffin because they crashed so much. There are a hot plane. You have to fly them in and fly them out. No glide to him, well obvious was I wouldn't going overseas. Are you gonna take every dinner in school? And I get into him, you only told

run out of school. Went over in the Queen Mary and three right at a Christmas time, seventeen thousand on board. No escort. Made it across in five days the land of the first thing Classgow, Scotland. From there what the train took reading England and there I was stationed until just before D Day when I landed Alma Beach. It was a landing craft infantry held around two hundred and some of us, how many engineers and some of candidates.

They're shooting us. My buddy and I were in the back of the ship and the guys ranches to get off. They're up on the front when we hit the beach a hundre of yards and shore. We had a sandbar. They went right over the rail equipment and everything hel must fly on. They dropped the ramps. One was twenty deep for in the hunter yards and they see me, see we're having trouble, and they shot a cable out

for us. And he went hand over hand because fifth going down and at the tops of machine going at hundred fifty two rounds, the animal across my back has throw that. All struggles and got off gas match that one. My shirt went off, my shoes went off, so we got the shore all they had their pants on. My buddy and I stand on the beach look at HR and said, what a hell of way to fight a war.

And the object was the common engineers. On D Day, we're going to make an airstrip where across the top of the beach, and he plans he couldn't make it back across the channel. We're going to be serviced by us. When we landed, they weren't even off the beach shut so never materialized. We stayed on the beach most of the day and that night we got back in far enough to get to a hedgeroll and that was that.

I'm then on maintaining emergency strip and I went from forty seven airstrips across strel five miles off the beach, or called the German truck. Germans, they left. We didn't have nothing like that yet. Positive traction, Oh vote, that truck would started kind of above zero. They always tell you to watch your bully tracks. First shot. Will we come to a guy Rice from Kentucky. There's a radio sitting on the show. He grabs the radio, glows his arm right off, And that was, of course the last

we saw him. That was before we found the German truck. So we got up there in the four five US. Now what will we do. We've got a big chain with a half track and hook on it and pull that thing our own up field. Aminted something to explode, and nothing happened. Now, who wants to open the door. We're gonna throw up and tie on the latch. Nothing happened, Now, who wants to try the hood? We poured some gas

and that we'll figure the combination on start up. When we kept that truck all through Europe and were was it? The parks struck thrown back from parts to the real Ashland, the m peace towys. Why don't you keep it to the front. You wanted to tell you you're getting near the back of the MPAs to get chicken and they will start to pick it up. Most of the time it was hectic. Stuff was born and coming, moving all the time. With Pattent, we always had his protection ahead

of us. Like what happens if the front line breaks down? One time as a battle of balls are luction were the first wave we went in and we lost seventy some planes. We always want to pull the bomb side over the first thing. They said they wanted to film and they wanted any information they could get off of it. Dewey and I had left to take the bomb side off. We got there and the snow's up there here, we said. We went in the warning. We had a l g

I store. We pick it in the farmhouse. Half we brewed up, start a fire and trying to keep warm. He looks out, he says, every going their own way. They're coming back and say, hey, what's going on? Guys? You have better get hot or the crow through one a mile behind us. Great, we guys going couple fake and the others We already, get taught, will be shocked, combat and empty go go, never stopped your checking off and there get out of here, Get out of here.

After the break and ended up, the kids didn't have not much to eat. We found him in the morning and what we call ten of one rashes. Stay with us. You're listening to service stories of hunger and war from my heart radio. I'm Jacqueline Proposo, and we're here with Harold but Long of the U. S. Army Air Corps as he moves to through Europe. About forty minutes into the movie saving Private Ryan, we're thrust into a rainy

hill fire of combat and chaos. Looking closely, we can spot Vin Diesel as Private Caparso, picking apples from the ground and chomping them down while bullets stream over his head. It's a poignant moment of humanity, this reaching, gnashing, dropping, reaching again, and then jumping into the fray. It says a lot about the last time this soldier got his hands on a fresh apple. We're similarly following Bud on

foot through France. Now there were a few major players when it comes to top command in the European Theater, and Bud's general Patton was one of them, and a few episodes we'll hear another perspective of eating on the front lines with laws and chirosa Kai as he moves with General Dahlquist's divisions what's most important when facing active fire and finding food at the front. Let's return to late nineteen forty four and following along. August sixteen, we

come in Paris with a free French. We couldn't hold it, so we went in to see what was going on. It's amazing, went right down the sham de leis from the arc when the soul. You weren't see a bicycle nothing. I don't know where these people did. Finally August little of Paris September October one pack of Paris on three days pass. There was nothing like it. We seeen Cares when we went in first jam with bicycles and they all wanted a cigarette Gui cigarette. No little kids like

that cigarette. Papa. We give tig bars we called boop bars at KM one rations. But once while you get some dumb ra ka rations. I lived in k Rations and Sea Rations kay Rations had biscuits. Of them had four cigarettes morning when at the fig bar and them and trying eggs, mixed water with it either like that sea ragins were in cans corned beef seventy five years. I couldn't send us smell it, and they got better. Finally put hamburgs and baked beans and they can and

they started mixing up better towards the end. Another thing was orange marmelade had pieces of orange peel and it was sitner in August and wast so bad. You used to take the bad net and cut the can open, room it open and pour it on the ground all around where we're gonna eat. They swarmed her there and leave us all and I still can't eat it for this day. Orange marter relade got them the November and apper day, we're in a field, seven guys to attend

mud freezing cold snow, and couldn't keep warm for nothing. Lieutenants, you know it's the town up ahead of us, head of school, head of the town hall, head of theater, head of hotel, and the school shot right down. When they had no coal and there was water in the basement. They get no pumps the pump water out because they didn't have any electric. And I had six rooms and had a good sized kitchen on it, and he said, what if we pumped the basement, I'll get the furness going.

We'll take three rooms. We'll get three rooms. Scare kids to go to school. And they bought it. Why not? And they ended up the kids didn't have not much to eat. We fed them in the morning and what we call ten of one rashes. There was enough rations in the case for ten guys for one day. And then the farmers didn't bring some eggs to make some eggs with it. Once in a while, the kids we bring milk and from the farm, but there was all raw milk to when I was dragon, but their kids

would drink that. And they left around one or thirty or two in the afternoon, and they always give them a box of ki or ten of rashers to take home with them, because he said, mom, pod got nothing to eat, doesn't eat when we're there. From November until February, Mets, Germany was right across the river from us, and that was to speak west point for the Germans. They shell us every once in a while, but couldn't miss our children.

And if you all around us the airfield and protecting this area was a railroad terminal in this town too. We want her up tower to one night just to see what it was going on and have a drink. We called her Mo. She run the hotel. The Germans have taken it over and are terrible. She used to raise chickens. They take them away, but she had a small garden to take everything out of the garden. They come in and drink, and they were out for to

pay for it or anything else. I got to talking to her, and she can make it a dying good drop instead for us, like an omel or something like that. What a difference, she said, I haven't been used in four years. Who had water in it? Right up to the first of second row we had a mayor holding out. We pumped it out and use it. So we pumped the basement. Now I'll trick the first and I can remember you at Christmas time. We're only three or four miles from the front. We're all in their a USO.

And when you know, one bomber comes over m h and dropped the bomb right on the main street and slipped down main street right up to the square and stopped. All our toury guys were in there with us. Nobody was watching the buns or nothing, And that's the sucker. What happened to be a dud. But the darned fool, I want to go back and see you what he hit. He comes back to. By that time, they are total. You can grown out their base and they just ride a wall off and he ready and got him. But

somebody in the town tipped him off. He said he could have knocked the whole offen out. For most of the time, we lived on k rations and box apples. Who's the one I missed growing up? And said, all going into the apples just an off normity running into an apple archer. I think they were for Sayer a Marbell or Coniak or whatever they make edible. But that was the only time we run into like that. Apples. A lot of the guys orangs was the biggest thing.

A lot of this regular orange. You never saw an orange or he and the most saying this home is freedom. Well we got fifty miles of Berlin with Patton's outfit. We don't know what was going on in politically. Eisenhower and Churchill and Saling, they said we're gonna let the Russian sea. Patton was really ticked. Oh he was hot. He said that, hold on, we're going south. That's where I got to know, from central York, right through central

Germany right to Lens Austria and met the Russian Lens Austria. Oh, they're a rough bunch of guys. Them home for four were didn't know if they had a home or any of the family life. They ain't have a down about nothing. We canna get along with Williams. So finally a little terrisor and we could go in town one night, they could go into the town the next day. We won't going to get because we can a big who won this? Who won that? And then we were on the concentration camp.

He could smell that thing five miles away. Wow, it's in central Germany. And a little town was there offered or something like that. Then we took a half track cope Tacadia. Most of the European, French, Americans, Holland and England, and they said at one time he had about four thousand and they were rough ship. They said. The Germans left about three days before. I said, how come you guys, and someone were able to He says, you're in Germany.

Where you gonna go? You said, you get outside the gate, so any level to shoot you and you guys weren't there yet. We had k rashes worth when we started breaking open. The advantage comes that don't know. We'll kill them if they ate too much of it. Once there's stomach, will swalloup, give him a little bit of time. It was he could he couldn't happen. It's just devastating. Guys could hardly go. They were landing on the ground or landing in a bunker. Wouldn't barracks, you know, half of

them wouldn't make it either. We talked to a couple of guys shot down in the Air Force six or eight months before that. They were in pretty good shape. But some of these guys have been here for three years. The eighth the mayor the German War is that far after the end, I mean dense preparations. Germany herd herself on Poland at the beginning of September, and in pursuance of our guarantee to Poland, and in common with the French Republic, Great Britain, the British Empire and Commonwealth of

Nations declared war upon this foul aggression. After Gallant France had been struck down we from this island and from our United Empire, maintained the struggle single handed for a whole year, until we were joined by the military might of Soviet Russia and later by the overwhelming power and resorting of the United States of America. We get back to France and we said, let's go see my just went after left the last place. I went on and saw them, Hey, how about eight or ten cases a

ten on? What you want doing it? And I told my story to take as many as you want. We pull up there and it was like old Company week West in February. Now this is August. Everybody in town comes running. Who are you guys? Man, Hey, ma, I got some foods for you. I took that answer her, Oh you guys, well, you have robbed the place. She didn't want to take it. She's always stole or something.

They give it to us. The war is over all right, You guys will never come will never see against him suiting back when we sell or coming back to see just excatisfied because a notice and attention to go back to a lot of things to do would hold yet and we hadn't been home from two over two years. By the end of the war, six million men had left farm life, and the meanwhile, millions of women soldiers home on furlough for planting season, interred Japanese Americans, and

programs developed with school children made up the difference. After the war, many returned to their farms, many others, like Bud, did not. Bud returned to Upstate, New York and worked at Curtis again for a short while. Then he went back to school and eventually became a superintendent for his town, where he worked until retirement at ninety eight. He lives up State to this day. If curious to learn more, head to Bud's page at service podcast dot org, or

check out our Instagram and Facebook. We are at service podcast, where we regularly share some extra audio clips and more nerdy food history. We met Bud at a community event his Livingstone County just unveiled a new war memorial this Veteran's Day and making it brought together veteran families across many generations. In our next episode, we'll explore how such events can help our veterans talk about their war experiences

and what part food plays in the conversation. Until then, I invite you to invite your loved Ones to the Table. Service is a production of I Heart Radio. This episode was produced and edited by me Jacqueline Reposo. Misty Boddiger assisted in production of this episode. Gabrielle Collins is our supervising producer. Christopher hassiotis our executive producer. Thank you to Jason Skinner of Livingstone County Veteran Services for connecting us

with Bud for this episode. Thank you for listening. Don't forget to subscribe to Service on your favorite platform so you never miss an episode, and thanks for dropping a review while you're at it. Most of all, thank you to those who are serving and those who have served