Although the V-mail system was only used between June 1942 and November 1945, over 1 billion items were processed through these means. V-mail, short for “Victory mail,” was a particular postal system put into place during the war to drastically reduce the space needed to transport mail thus freeing up room for other valuable supplies. To bring mail service to those serving worldwide, the military postal system required a global network and innovative practice. In 1945, 2.5 billion pieces went through the Army Postal Service and 8 million pieces through Navy post offices. Each year of the war, the number of pieces of mail increased. An unprecedented amount of mail was moved about during the war with Army post offices, fleet post offices and US post offices flooded with mail.

The military mail system and the amount of post flowing back and forth internationally during the war was massive. The critical nature of the mail effort was addressed in the 1942 Annual Report to the Postmaster General which stated: “The Post Office, War and Navy departments realize fully that frequent and rapid communication with parents, associates and other loved ones strengthens fortitude, enlivens patriotism, makes loneliness endurable and inspires to even greater devotion the men and women who are carrying on our fight far from home and from friends.” One specific wartime demand was the efficient and expeditious delivery of mail to US forces serving around the country and overseas. Many of these developments would continue to endure and evolve, while others remain particular to the period, employed during World War II only, as a way to address a specific wartime need.

The war was the impetus behind a great number of inventions, some of them brand new and some wartime alterations made to existing practice.

Call of war 1942 free stuff