Could a town of 12,000 people feed 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers EACH DAY, every day of the year, for four consecutive years … provided entirely with donated items by volunteers?
Could this same community do this during WWII when sugar, flour, eggs, dairy products, coffee, butter, lard, and shortening were rationed?
Sounds impossible, doesn’t it. But guess what? The town of North Platte, Nebraska and the neighboring rural communities within a 100-mile radius did this.
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During World War II, their railroad station served troop trains that stopped for 10-20 minutes carrying servicemen to their units to fight in Europe or the Pacific. It started when community members wanted to do something special for the boys serving in the Nebraska National Guard when their steam-driven train stopped for coal and water. They discovered, however, that their information was incorrect. The train they greeted wasn’t carrying young soldiers from Nebraska. Regardless, they decided to give the food, gifts, and appreciation to the fellows who did happen to be on that train, and wished them well and good luck. The citizens of North Platte were amazed at how much these men appreciated their gifts and support.
A young woman who had been part of that North Platte group was so moved by how those boys reacted, she proposed that the people of North Platte and the surrounding communities organize to greet the trains, offer a little affection and support to the troops, and provide them with amenities that were not available on the train, like home cooked food, cigarettes, candy, magazines, desserts and other simple pleasures from home – to show the boys that what they were doing was appreciated. The town and other nearby towns and communities responded enthusiastically to the request.
Volunteers transformed the modest train station into the North Platte Canteen. Funded and staffed entirely by the community, it opened every single day of the year from 5:00 a.m. until after midnight…for over four years!
Despite their small size, local residents provided food, coffee, gifts, and friendly conversation to more than six million GIs. They were greeted and given home prepared food – even angel food birthday cakes – and other amenities, and received love and appreciation from volunteers working at the North Platte Canteen before and after the war ended.
Syndicated columnist and author Bob Greene captured this forgotten piece of history in his book, Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Nebraska Canteen. Greene wrote what he learned from his research in the town’s archives, but mostly through his interviews with those (mostly women) who volunteered at the North Platte Canteen supporting the troops and interviews with men who had experienced their hospitality when the troop trains stopped briefly in North Platte.
They got no public funding or federal support for their efforts – they used their own ration stamps and resources to provide the food and amenities they gave to the soldiers and sailors, in addition to receiving generous donations in food and cash from individuals and private companies alike.
Even when Japan had surrendered in August 1945, the Canteen coordinating committee realized however, that their work was not done, and they continued for 8 more months after VJ day, serving the troops on the trains bringing them home, until that number grew fewer and fewer. The last troops were served at the North Platte Canteen on the evening of 1 April 1946.
If you need a genuine feel-good story about the heart and spirit of America and what hopefully remains good about our country that is tangled in a quagmire of polarization, anger and acrimony, this is your next read!
