What Did People Do If Caught in Tobacco Shortages Long Ago

[cosmicfolklore]

I would argue that tobacco was NOT only grown in the South. It may have only been cultivated as a large scale crop down here, but tobacco has history in Michigan and many other Northern States. And, as to who would face shortages would be the question. During the Depression and two World Wars, tobacco was plentiful in rural areas, and that is why it was called a “poor man’s pleasure.” Those who lived in more urban areas and could not grow their agricultural products were the worst off. But, for many, if you had room to farm, you had tobacco. You may have had no one to sell to, and both Northern and Southern troops may have stolen your crops, tobacco was a little easier to hide, as many farmers would bury their tobacco harvest anyways.
Even in the future, I am not afraid of any shortages of tobacco. But, folks that can’t or don’t grow their own foods and products may have legitimate fears. Tobacco is a quick crop. Long warm seasons down here, allow me two harvests of tobacco in a year. I cut the stalks, and even now, I have a second set of tobacco coming up behind it. And, we won’t get a frost until early December or maybe mid November on a fluke year.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I grew up in Southern Indiana. My neighbor grew his own tobacco. He turned it into chewing tobacco but it was tobacco nonetheless. I can remember the leafs hanging in his barn.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

During the second WW ,even here up North in Finland it was very popular to grow tobacco in the rural areas.

 

[seacaptain]

Many Forums members have more tobacco on hand than various European kings who smoked in earlier centuries, I surmise.

I don't. But I do have more electricity and flushing toilets than they did.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Hey Seacaptain, as soon as I get over the “ick” factor of doing my business inside the house... blech, I will get me one of those fancy toilets. ::

 

[thehappypiper]

On the subject of shortages, I have been told by several Czechs that during the Russian Occupation, food was so limited that beer played a significant role in supplying calories to the population. I had a Czech girlfriend who told me what it was like during these shortages. Word would get around the workplace/office that something...say oranges were now available at such and such a street. So everyone would nominate one person to leave work to queue and everyone would give her/him as much money as they could afford and s/he'd disappear for the afternoon. Sometimes s/he'd come back and everyone would be happy. Sometimes the product would have run out before her turn to buy.

Another friend went to Moscow in the 80s. She stayed in a decent hotel, but her evening meal consisted of one large beefsteak tomato and some black bread.

The mother of a Chinese student I used to tutor told me that when she was growing up in Jiangsu Province, her entire family used to live on about 800 rmb per month. That's $100. During the same conversation she told me of her Chinese Building Firm's plan to build a new 5 star hotel not far from where she used to live. She is the CFO.

What a change

 

[bluto]

Pilsner urquell .. good stuff

 

[workman]

@olkofri: I don't think there are any records from warehouses or stores that go that far back. There is no reference to tobacco in the sagas of Leif the Lucky and his trips to Newfoundland, if that's what you are thinking about. I will venture the guess that people here used tobacco in the same way and at the same time as the rest of Europe, maybe with a fifty or so years delay, as we are on the outskirts of Europe.

 

[olkofri]

Yes, that's kind of what I was thinking about. I've read the Sagas and no mention of it. Guess the relationships with natives went sour before they had a chance to pass the leaf on. Ah well, there goes that line of scholarly research.

 

[jvnshr]

Stole from those who hoarded

Simply, peck is in danger.

 

[5star]

Hmmm . . . maybe I should ‘balance the portfolio’ and buy some more coffee

 

[seldom]

I've read that the Marshall Plan included very large shipments of tobacco to Germany free of charge (69,000 tons in 1949 alone). Of course the Nazi's were totally against tobacco claiming it was a vice spread by Jewish and black people so this part of the Marshall Plan not only helped American tobacco farmers but also went against fascist doctrine.

At the close of World War II things were bleak for German and other European smokers. I've read accounts of men waiting outside American army quarters hoping to score a cigarette butt with some tobacco on it.

 

[workman]

@Seldom: I have read a lot about WWII and Hitler, but have never seen any reference to politics on tobacco consumption. Your comment made me google it, and of course you are correct. Also they used for their propaganda the fact that Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt were smokers where Hitler, Mussolini and Franco were not. At least not openly, as I think I remember reading somewhere that Mussolini was an occasional smoker, but was too afraid of Hitler to tell him.

 

[seldom]

Workman; Nazi anti-smoking is a bit of history I think of when I hear people complain about "anti-smoking Nazis". They are often more accurate than they realize!

 

[workman]

It's ironic that "Unser Führer" was heavily addicted to all kinds of drugs instead.

 

[mikethompson]

Well I remember reading that soldiers would be given a small bottle of brandy on Hitler's birthday during the early years of the war as well. I've never heard about tobacco being included in the Marshall Plan before, that's interesting.

 

[eaglewriter1]

Well appearently during the first World war, Tobacco Rations for Soldiers and civilians could be made up of as far as up to 80% of various Foilage. And only the Rest being Tobacco. So what you do during a shortage? If you dont have enough, stretch it. And no I dont want to know how that stuff smoked.^^

 

[eaglewriter1]

Also appearently some people turned to smoking good old Galium odoratum being woodruff, being one of the first leaves to be smoked in europe even before tobacco became a thing. Wich I would not recommend replicating as this stuff is ever so sligthly poisonus.

 

[molach95]

Workman's description of Faroese culture in relation to tobacco closely matches that of Scotland. Here tobacco was also believed to have medicinal properties at one time, particularly in relation to typhoid and fleas. It was common among Scottish Gypsies/Travellers to start children smoking as young as 4 or 5 for that reason. I know in the Hebrides (Islands off the West Coast of Scotland) people smoked black tea leaves in their pipes when tobacco was unavailable c. 100 years ago and silverweed roots, or possibly the leaves (I don't know exactly) weere also dried and smoked. It was a fairly common thing to resort to these alternatives I gather as tobacco was not grown here and need to be brought to the local shops in the Highlands and Islands.

 

[bluto]

Sailors on HMRS would be rationed a quart of rum daily , the tradition was abandoned in modern times , but really not so long ago ..
Also heard of tea leaves being smoked when there was little tobacco to be had in the colonies