This special issues features past Penny Bank Post articles that commemorate World War II. In many ways, this is also a celebration of the contributions made by the author of the majority of these articles - Guy Williams. We hope you enjoy seeing these articles as a single collection. If there are special issues you would like to see in the future, let us know!
Contents – World War II Banks
Willett, Jim (2009) WWII Banks and Metal Restrictions.................3-4
Williams, Guy (2019) World War II Metal Restrictions Part 2.........5-10
Williams, Guy (2004) From the Trenches – Memories of War........11-14
Williams, Guy (1996) Four World War II Wood Banks...................15
Williams, Guy (2002) War Pigs – “My Dirty Dozen”........................16-18
Williams, Guy (2003) My Second Dirty Dozen – the Sequel..........19-21
Williams, Guy (2011) Dirty Dozen – Part 3......................................22-26
Williams, Guy (2003) Squels That Helped Win Victory..................27-28
World War II Banks and Metal Restrictions
Submitted by Jim Willett
Many younger collectors may not be familiar withthelimitationofmetalsforcivilianuseduring WorldWarII.Iwasjustayoungboyatthetime,but Irememberleadsoldiersdisappearedfromthe5& Dimestores.
Weareallfamiliarwiththepaper-mache,wood andvariousnon-metalprocessesfromwhichmany oftheWorldWarIIbanksweremade.Anumberof thosebankssuggestedthatyoucouldputcoinsin themtoequalthe$18.75requiredtobuyoneU.S. SavingsBondtowardsa$25.00maturityvalueinten years. Fortunately, for we bank collectors, they weren'tallusedfor thatpurposeand so wehave somewell-preservedbankstocollect.
The Ohio Art Company made the Remember PearlHarbordrumbank.Isuspectthatthebankwas
convertedtoRememberPearlHarborand used to encourageU.S.SavingsBondsfromadrumbankthat thecompanypreviouslymadeofsomewhatdifferent colors.IhavetwobanksmadeofleadwithWorld Warties.Restrictionsuponthesaleanduseofleadas wellasothermetalswereimposedinEnglandsomewhatearlierthatintheUnitedStatessinceitentered thewarinSeptember1939.
A fairly common English bulldog lead bank whichcomesingrey,brown,orblack,hasonthebottomis(onmybank)astickerwhichsays"toopena warsavingsbox,removethislabel".
on the front and a shield stating: "This bank holds $18.75 When filled take it toany Post Office or Bank and get aUnited States Savings Bond which increasesintenyears to$25."
Thesecondbankshown (Photo4_FRONT) Iwas able to purchase at the Convention in Olathe, KS 2019 from Bob Peirce. It is the same bank as the aboveexceptonthe oppositesideof wheretheman-
ufacturer name is this bank (Photo5_LEFTSIDE) has the following printed: "Your Government needs these metal ends turn them in for scrap". (Photo 6_RIGHTSIDE)
Is thisalink tothe United Statesbecomingmore involvedin WW2 andtheaboveactonmetalrestrictions? Possibly so.
This third bank (Photo 7_FRONT & Photo 8_BACK) Iwasalsoabletopurchasein 2019. Onthe way home from the Convention I stopped at a flea market just outside St. Joseph, Missouri. At one of theboothsI sawthislittle bank, but it didnot have a top or bottom cap. Why you ask would or should I havepurchasedthisbank?Wellithasthesameprinting (Photo9_SIDE) as the one Ipurchasedfrom Bob a few days before: "Your Government needs these metal ends turn them in for scrap". Indeed, someone cut off the capsand turned them in to ascrap drive! At least that is the story I am going with.
The fourth and final bank (Photol0_FRONT & Photoll_BACK)ofthistypeislikethefirstbankpictured. The printing on the bank is all the exact same withonly one sidehaving the manufacturer information printed. The big difference is that the top (PHOTO12_TOP) and bottom (PHOTO13_BOTTOM) cap to this bank are not metal at all. The top and bottomhave been rolledovertoholdthe capsin place on this bank and the caps are made of red and
From the Trenches - Memories of War
Submitted by Guy Williams
As in many other areas of our hobby such as silver, pottery, and cast iron, banks or moneyboxes were just a tiny portion of the thousands of items produced as trench art by the soldiers, civilians, and different companies through out history. With exceptions in silver and pottery, I believe that these items have more significance with regard to the memories and/or feelings of the individuals who made or purchased these items in those bad times.
I have found very little written on the subject of trench art as a whole. It seems that most of the items are European in origin, and from World War I, with exceptions. I have narrowed my view of these items to those that are dated and have an inscription. I’ve also included the odd example that isn’t dated but ones that I’m sure are trench art. These are pieces having a more personal feel to them as opposed to being just another piece of militaria.
One book that is fairly new but not easy to get in the Midwest is Trench Art Materialities and Memories of War by Nicholas J. Saunders, published by “Berg” in 2003. The ISBN # is 1-85973-608-4 for the paperback. This book is where most of the following information comes from, and it provides a new perspective of how to think about these items.
Trench art is a misleading term applied to the array of objects made by soldiers, prisoners of war, and civilians from the waste of industrialized war and a host of miscellaneous materials. By definition, trench art originated during the industrialized wars, however, examples of trench date back as far as 400 B.C. and extend up to the current day conflicts in Iraq, and other areas of the world. The greatest quantity and concentration of trench art was made during and after the Great War, WW I and the intervening years up to WW II, 1914 –1939, and mostly, but not exclusively, in the area of the Western front in France and Belgium. While not all of the items were made in the trenches, many examples exist that were made by the front line soldiers. Trench art was also made behind the lines, in prisoner-of-war camps, hospitals, civilian internment sites, on the seas, and by commercial companies.
The engineers, mechanics and metal smiths made
some of the more stunning examples in safer environments behind the lines or while recovering in hospitals. Also, prisoners of war did not always endure the same pressures that the front line personnel were subject to while making these items. With different environments came the availability of different materials for the men to use in making the pieces. However, examples of elaborate metal ware items exist that were most definitely made in the trenches, as documented by the soldiers themselves in letters. Many trench art items were made as keepsakes by the soldiers and as items to send home, but many were also made on commission for other servicemen, for buddies, to use for barter or sale to make extra money, to get favors, and for food.
Trench art made during and after WW I can be classified into three areas, within these there are also subcategories, to consider. These area’s are: Soldiers 1914 – 1930 made by soldiers in the front line, behind the lines, in prisoner of war camps, or recuperating in hospitals. This area is bounded by the dates 1914 –1930 and its makers identified as service personnel. This area can be subdivided into four sections Active Service 1914 – 1918, Prisoner of War 1914 – 1919, the Wounded 1914 – 1919 and Post-war Service personnel 1918 – 1930. Different types of items were made in these sections, and the book mentioned above goes into this in depth.
Civilians 1914 – 1939 this area covers some twenty-five years and the economic conditions of the time made a thriving industry for civilian trench art. This category, by far, is the largest in terms of the quantity of the items produced but the experiences of the civilians being different from the service personnel resulted in less of a variety of items produced. Civilian trench art also tends to be more ornamental rather than functional, and less personalized than that of the items made by the soldiers, with exceptions. These items can be subdivided into three areas; Civilians 1914 – 1918 these items were generally made for sale or barter with soldiers. If not dated or with an inscription that the war was over they are hard to distinguish from the next category. Civilians 1919 – 1939 - mostly made for widows, and battlefield pilgrims, and for tourists as souvenirs.
Continued from page 17
From the Trenches
The last category here is Civilian Intern’s 1914 – 1919these items are very difficult to tell apart from prisoner of war art as both sometimes made identical items. Commercial Production 1918 – 1939 -mostly made in Britain these items were made during the final stages of the war but mostly after the Armistice of Nov 11, 1918. Normally these items were souvenirs of the soldiers personalized and mounted on a black base; also there are those items of ready-made or to be made trench art with no personalization. These items were widely advertised in trade publications by the companies that produced them and often referred to as, “Mounted War Trophies”.
I believe the most sought after pieces of trench art are the miniatures; planes, tanks, submarines, and caps made from the ends of expended shells, prisoner of war items and some of the more unusual moneyboxes. Following are some examples of the trench art banks that I have been lucky enough to find. Please share any unusual bank that you have with the club and please send me a picture, as I would appreciate seeing any and all examples.
Trench art banks pictured on page 16 are as follows - TA1) - Relief carved coconut with design of a woman in long dress and a dog standing on its back legs behind her. This bank is included here because it is an example of prisoner of war art, on the ribbon around the front end is “Un triste recuerdo de un preso military ano de 1889” which translates to “A lonely remembrance of a prisoner of war of the year 1889”. TA2) - Sugarcane Stick, this is decorated with three transfers of topless hula dancers on one side with “Rem P.H.” burned into the piece. I am sure this person meant Remember Pearl Harbor. On the other side is “C. B. 39” possibly a unit he was stationed at, and under the coin slot is “J.D. Zerger 1942 – 43” an unusual item and material. TA3) - Painted Coconut from a different era, this item may sometimes be referred to as a sweetheart piece, it is mounted onto a wood base that has a screw. On the front the eyes, nose and mouth are highlighted in yellow, green, and red. Towards the top is says, “To Edith”, on the back is “From Harry – USN”. There are also two palm trees painted, one on each side, and the names of places where Harry toured, “The Philippines, Marshall Islands, Galicoan, Carolines 1945”.
Next are some examples of the most common type of trench art decorated shells. These I think are a little
more unusual starting with a couple from World War IDC1) - Jar with what I think is an unfinished design on the front of a horse standing above a name tag. I think that some type of brazing technique may have been used to do this. There is also some scrollwork around the coin slot, and the horse design with two vines with flowers, also, the initials of “Y V”. The top has a regiment badge or button as it’s handle, which is tough to read. The base is actually fashioned from another shell made to fit tightly to form the bottom of the bank. DC 2)Towel Rack for lack of a better term, on the front is a bat that is a separate piece from the shell. The two end pieces have the following information “1918 – 185th Aero Sqd. - U.S.A” and “1918 – Sgt. John Horne – U.S.A.” as can be seen in the photo’s. DC3 & DC4) Castle pillars showing brick work to the shell. These two are not dated. I believe the wider of the two is maybe WW II era, and it has the name “J.W. Bennett” in block letters on the top of the piece. There is a trap that unscrews on the bottom of this one, and the thinner pillar unscrews in half. DC5) - Small shell from WW II featuring a badge with a fist inside a circle of arrows and a crown on top. On the wrist are the letters “R A C”. The top unscrews on this shell. DC6) - 105 MM cannon shell is kind of plain except for the wording etched into it “Italian Campaign 43 – 44”. DC7) - Etched 37 MM Shell, which I think may be an example of civilian trench art. It is a heavily etched shell with the following, “Worlds War – Argonne Wooos – France Nov 11, 1918”.
M1) - A model of a submarine on top of a tall cylinder. There is no writing on this piece, which may have been part of the ship itself. I believe it is made of stainless steel. M2) - a heavy gauge Tin Sign that hung above an example of commercially produced trench art, one which I haven’t seen yet. Hopefully I will be able to bring them back together. The sign says the following “This is a Naval Mine of the type used in the second world war in defense of our coasts and as an offensive weapon in enemy waters. It is made available to THE SHIPWRECKED MARINERS’ SOCIETY by the Admiralty for use as a collecting box. It is placed here by the kind permission of The Exmouth Urban District Council.”
The last photo’s are of some examples of commercially produced trench art I think several members in the club may have one or a couple of pieces. C1)Decorated Shell bank maybe one referred to above
as a “war trophy” an actual shell with four flowers and stars in relief around the body of the shell mounted on a black Bakelite base it is undated. C2) - Bazooka Shell, I think this may be J. Chein Company but I’m not positive, and it is not marked. The shell is steel with a wooden pry out trap in the bottom that I believe is original. It is marked, “57 MM Dime Bank” in black ink close to the base. C3) - Cone Top Bazooka Shells made by the J. Chein Company with labels, “ Save for War Bonds and Stamps.” The one on right has a solid bottom to be cut off, the left one has a twist trap. C4) - 20 MM shell banks with paper labels. Manufactured by the Stoner Mfg Corp in Aurora, IL during WW II. I believe these banks were produced throughout the war, and maybe shortly after. Three of the shells have lot numbers and are dated 1943; one shell has the date 1945 on the bottom. Pictures on pages 15 & 16.
My Second Dirty Dozen - The Sequel
Submitted by Guy Williams
Since the appearance of the first dirty dozen pig article printed in the September 2000 issue of the Penny Bank Post, I have been fortunate enough to accumulate a second set of twelve banks and ephemera featuring pigs used in the context of saving for defense, and supporting the ultimate victory in WW II. I would like to share these with the club members in this article, and I hope that you like them. If any of you reading this article have different piggy banks featuring a war slogan that haven’t appeared in either of these articles, I would like to hear from you, and possibly get a photo of the bank.
The first star in this sequel is a short round pig bank with big ears made by the UHL pottery company, it has a large letter “V” surrounding the coin slot, and the statement, “Cents for Defense” written of the top of the hind hips. I included two variations of this bank colored White and Light Blue in the first article. This bank is Dark Blue. It has five white stars, five red stars, and red eyes. It is marked, “Botay K.C. Mo”, on the bottom of the pig. Lloyd Martin had new information as to the manufacture of these pottery pig banks, and their distribution in the article on the UHL Pottery Company published in the December 2002 issue of the Post.
The next two banks are interesting variations of the, “Make him Squeal for Victory”, Hitler composition pig banks. (I originally thought that the only variation to be found would be in color of this bank, but so far I’ve never seen any except for one repainted in red.) The first example has twenty-one war bond serial numbers hand-written in ink all over its body. I believe that these bonds were purchased with the savings from this bank because the text appearing on the original box for the bank states:
“Make “ADOLF-THE PIG” win his service stripes, by inscribing on him the number of every bond you buy.”
The second pig has a paper sign attached to the right side of the bank just behind its ear, which takes up most of the surface on that side. It states it was a gift from the C.E.O of The General Alloys Company of Boston, Mass. I’ll provide more detailed information about these two variations and an original box in future article.
Next is a tiny ceramic pig bank, and one that is common to find in many color combinations. This example is all-white except for two green four leaf clovers, one on each rear hip, a green tie on top in front of the coin slot,
and the best thing for me is that it has a large brown letter “V” for victory on its’ left side.
Following is a small orange and brown cardboard pig. This bank is constructed by folding it together, and would have been destroyed when its owner wanted to retrieve the savings to buy a war bond. Printed on the top of the bank around the coin slot is the following statement, “Sears Lucky Jingle Piggie - Save with me for War Savings Stamps”. This bank is also an unusual cross-collectible as it would appeal to collectors of Sears department store chain advertising. The head and tail are separate flat pieces, which are folded over, and then inserted into cutouts in the pig’s body.
Three more California pigs sitting on their hind legs in the style of Stoddard's #536 are next. I included two of this style in the first dirty dozen, but these examples have slightly different statements. They still feature two fivepetal flowers, one on each shoulder, and the colors are the same. The first has the word, “Victory”, on his belly, the second, “Saving for Defense”, and the third one says, “I am saving for Victory”. This last bank also has a souvenir label stamped on the bottom stating it is from the, “San Jacinto Memorial Monument and Museum”.
The differences between these banks amount to only a couple of printed words, but I’ve seen more than one of each variant, which leads me to wonder - just how many other variations of this patriot exist?
A muscular pig has enlisted next in line, and is similar to Stoddard' s #493, except that it’s all white in color with pink and brown highlights. Written beneath the glazing to the side of the coin slot is the statement, “Victory Bank”. I’ve also seen this bank with a year and a person's name printed on the other side of the coin slot as well - maybe as a gift from an enlisted soldier.
The last three members to round out the second dirty dozen are copies of magazine covers/pages featuring piggy banks pictured in some way to show that they were used to help save for war bonds, stamps or victory.
The Colliers magazine cover on June 2, 1945 shows a young woman getting ready to take a hammer to her smiling pig bank. The letter pinned up behind her reads as follows:
Continued from page 27
My Second Dirty Dozen - The Sequel
“TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE:
Your sons, husbands and brothers who are standing today upon the battlefronts are fighting for more than victory in war. They are fighting for a new world of freedom and peace.
We, upon whom has been placed the responsibility of leading the American forces, appeal to you with all possible earnestness to invest in war bonds to the fullest extent of your capacity.
Give us not only the needed implements of war, but the assurance and backing of a united people so necessary to hasten the victory and speed the return of your fighting men.”
(Douglas Mac Arthur, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Chester W. Nimitz are three of the signatories to the letter.)
Next is an advertising page titled, Smart Girl, from Mademoiselle magazine. The ad is for, “Jantzen Foundations”, and depicts a young woman licking a stamp to put in her savings book for United States Defense Savings Bonds. Sitting on the table in the lower part of the picture are the remains of a smashed piggy bank that has been sacrificed for the savings to purchase the defense stamps.
Treasury Department in consultation with the United States Office of Education. On page fifteen in the lower right-hand corner is a comic drawing of a pig bank with the face of Adolph Hitler.
An interesting fact about this picture is that it was drawn by Dr. Seuss who did have a part in the anti-Semitism feelings of the time with his drawings published in the daily tabloid newspaper the, “New York PM”. Some of his artwork of the period can be seen in the book, “Dr Seuss goes to War” by Richard H. Minear. It was published in 1999 by the New Press, New York, ISBN 1-56584-565X.The book includes several pictures of drawings that Dr. Seuss did for the tabloid, most depicting the axis power leaders in a poor light. His drawing of the piggy bank from Junk, however, is not included in the book.
This brings to an end the second installment of the saga of my dirty dozen's. Can we as a club find the stars that will stand proud and be counted for a third and fourth installment?
This fan of sequels certainly hopes so.
The final page comes from the leaflet entitled, Junk, which was issued by The War Savings Staff, United States
