World War II was felt in all quarters of this country, and was the last war in which the general population was greatly impacted by conflict in Europe and the Pacific.  From food stamps to the limited availability of gasoline and sugar (“use one teaspoon and stir like hell”) there was not a day that went by without some reminder.  As a seaside community, and having three branches of the Armed Forces present, Chatham (and all of Cape Cod) was particularly aware with nightly blackouts, collection of scrap material, and fishermen having special radios to report any U-boat sightings during their voyages.