Working

If you wanted to start a new business, or supplement your existing one,  during the Second World War it was necessary to apply for a commercial license with the Wartime Prices and Trade Board. This document is what a commercial license for retail and services would have looked like, in this case, granted to Herb's Electric Service in Coldwater, Ontario. 

During the early stages of industrial preparation for war, Allied powers faced the challenge of creating a tank that could be mass produced, and be comparable to those being manufactured in Germany. 

This 1941 report by the Ministry of Munitions and Supply provides insight into Canada's wartime manufacturing and construction power. The report addresses primary wartime industries' efforts such as shipbuilding, gun manufacturing, and heavy ammunition. However, it also reported on the growth of other related industries that nonetheless affected the civilian population more directly, such as timber and electricity. 

This study was commissioned in 1940 "to help people make up their minds about future policy." The Keirsteads apologized if the final product was "a bit patchy and dull", but asked for forbearance in view of the importance of the subject.

The Freemasons is one of the largest and oldest fraternal organizations in the world, and meetings were not typically interrupted by war. London, Ontario's, Union Lodge No. 380 was founded in 1879 and, to this day, meets on the second Monday of every month.

In the First World War, some businesses reported power shortages in the province of Ontario, the Canadian Manufacturers' Association were tasked with looking into the issue. 

By 1917, Sir George Foster, the Minister of Trade and Commerce, called for a National Business Conference to discuss the potential damage of the First World War to the Canadian economy, and the steps to take to combat the ramifications. 

The federal government encouraged Canadians to preserve resources in 1918. This brochure urged Canadians to preserve their food stuffs to ensure there was enough for soldiers fighting overseas. 

The annual statement of the town of Newcastle, New Brunswick, from the year 1918 details how the town’s money was disbursed in the final year of the First World War - including over $7000 invested in Victory Loan bonds.

A new Ford dealership in London, A.B. Greer and Sons, sent out a letter in 1916 to invite customers to inspect the latest Ford models in their showroom on the corner of York and Talbot streets. The letter was reused for personal correspondence in 1917, to conserve resources.