topic Re: Remember Back In The Day? in Community Chat

Remember Back In The Day?

Anonymous032819 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 17:51:03 GMT

When people had and used books of stamps/coupons for grocery shopping?

I think it was during WW2, but when you would shop, you would use these stamps/coupons to buy things, because of the rationing.

I can see us going back to that, to make sure that nobody hordes, and everybody gets a fair share.

I only remember seeing these books as a small child in the 1970's.

My mom kept them as a piece of history.I

They have disappeared since then, so if I am incorrect in how they were used, please forgive me, and correct me.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

Kachina624 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:05:42 GMT

@Anonymous032819 They were ration books. Each family was allotted only a limited amount of certain commodities like sugar. Once you'd used your allotted amount, you were out of luck. My mom saved some of hers and I still have them.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

Mominohio — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:06:26 GMT

My understanding was that you needed the stamp or the coupon, plus money. The coupon was the way of rationing the quantity, and you still had to pay the price as well.

Certain foods, like meat sugar, and other things like nylons, shoes, tires all had ration stamps. Gasoline too.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

qbetzforreal — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:09:07 GMT

Food rationing started during the Depression due to scarcity of food. The rationing of food and other materials was done during to support the troops.

Rationing was circumvented by people going to the Black Market to get what they wanted.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

sweetee2 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:09:10 GMT

If you want to really go back it would be S&H green stamps. I remember when my mother would collect them. I don't remember how or what they were used for maybe someone here could enlighten us.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

Anonymous032819 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:16:21 GMT

@sweetee2 wrote:
If you want to really go back it would be S&H green stamps. I remember when my mother would collect them. I don't remember how or what they were used for maybe someone here could enlighten us.

Yes, that's what I'm remembering, the S&H green stamps books.

It was just a passing thought that, as far fetched as it most likely is, that I could see us returning to that, especially if this lasts for a really long time.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

J Town Girl — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:20:02 GMT

@sweetee2 wrote:
If you want to really go back it would be S&H green stamps. I remember when my mother would collect them. I don't remember how or what they were used for maybe someone here could enlighten us.

Each time you shopped you would get a specific amount of green stamps depending on the amount of the purchase. You would have empty booklets in which to place the stamps. In our town there was a S&H green stamp store and once you had enough books filled you could go in and purchase an item.

It took quite a few books to be able to purchase an item. I remember my mother using green stamps to purchase a toaster. I seem to remember that it took a lot of books just for that purchase.

I remember being in stores with my mother and people, usually men, would not want their stamps and would give them to her. She was always so grateful.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

goldensrbest — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:21:08 GMT

@sweetee2 wrote:
If you want to really go back it would be S&H green stamps. I remember when my mother would collect them. I don't remember how or what they were used for maybe someone here could enlighten us.

You got to use them for products, gosh i so remember those ,people had books of them,you put them in th book,saved until you had enough ,for what you wanted.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

riley1 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:25:14 GMT

@J Town Girl - My mother collected the S&H stamps as well. It was my job to put them in the book and when the books were filled she turned them in for something. I think it was the store's way of thanking their customer for shopping at their store.

These were not the same thing as ration coupons.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

haddon9 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:27:23 GMT

S&H green stamps were a different animal than wartime rationing books. I remember them and my mom would save up so much to get a reward or gift like a toaster. I can also remember when banks would give out gifts like toasters when you opened an account.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

jeanlake — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:31:08 GMT

I licked quite a few S & H green stamps into those booklets. Parents would discuss, ad nauseum, what their next purchase would be. We'd look forward to riding in the car to the redemption store. Sounds like a church, eh? Woe to the kid on Oakland street who knocked over a lamp bought by green stamps.

Deferred gratification. My parents lived it.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

x Hedge — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:34:50 GMT

s&h green stamps were a consumer rewards program, and had nothing to do with rationing.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

ceekay — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:34:52 GMT

S&H Greenstamps had a catalog. We used to look through it when my mom had enough books of stamps to get something. I remember going to a store to pick up our items and walking around looking at the merchandise. Would have been the mid 1960s. Blast from the past!

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

Kachina624 — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:40:48 GMT

@sweetee2 wrote:
If you want to really go back it would be S&H green stamps. I remember when my mother would collect them. I don't remember how or what they were used for maybe someone here could enlighten us.

@sweetee2 I spent the first couple of weeks of my maternity leave in 1969, pasting a ton of those stamps in books, then I went and traded them for baby things.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

chickenbutt — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:42:46 GMT

@sweetee2 wrote:
If you want to really go back it would be S&H green stamps. I remember when my mother would collect them. I don't remember how or what they were used for maybe someone here could enlighten us.

I totally remember theS&H Green Stamps and the Bluechip Stamps. Ugh - having to lick them and paste them in the book for her. My tongue just got dry thinking about it.

There were these stores where you could exchange them for goods like kitchen stuff, household stuff, etc (that's all I remember).

I grew up in N CA and she would haul all of us to Santa Rosa to the stores so she could buy stuff with her books of stamps.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

millieshops — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:44:22 GMT

@Anonymous032819I remember playing with those ration books after the war ended. Really don't remember just which stamps my family had not used, probably because I hadn't learned to read much by then, but I know we still had some just as we still had the blackout window shades.

I'm hoping that many of the hoarders will soon run out of storage space. It's already beyond interesting, beyond my patience to think maybe they are just trying to assure themselves they'll be okay. And I'm not the only one - I talked with a friend today who described gun sales going on in her area right out on the open street. I'm not beyond thinking that someone is going to be killed over a pack of TP one day soon.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

SilleeMee — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:49:56 GMT

Today I think that sort of thing would be more like the Food Stamp program, only modified to accommodate everyone.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

Pearlee — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 19:38:19 GMT

The S&H Green stamps translate into "points earned on purchases" in today's world, to be redeemed usually towards other products or cash.

@Anonymous032819. IMO there is enough to be concerned about presently than to start fretting about things that could -- or could not -- happen in the future.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

Carmie — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 19:49:06 GMT

My parents had some of those rationing hooks. I remember asking what they were for. Hopefully, we won't need them again.

S&H green stamps are pretty recent. They went out business in the late 80's. My kids used to paste them in the books for me. I still use some small kitchen appliances that I got with them.

Re: Remember Back In The Day?

GrailSeeker — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 21:16:31 GMT

I still remember the livingroom table lamps my mom got with S&H green stamps. They are in a picture I have from when I was about 5.

Another grocery store gave Gold Bond stamps. I think I got a playpen that I never used, except for a puppy, for my first son in 1977.

Plaid Stamps were from another grocery store yet, maybe A&P. I know I got a Bonnie The Plaid Lassie doll in a Christmas exchange from my uncle who managed an A&P. Wish I still had her. She was a nice doll.