France Revises Gold Stock Valuation As War Measures
Paris outlines wartime economic decrees including revaluing gold stocks on a 23.34 milligram 900 fine basis and a temporary Bank of France loan of 20 billion francs. The program also expands food card distribution, limits on bakeries and alcohol, tax relief for farmers, and labor shifts to munitions to support wartime production. Finance Minister Reynaud argues France remains financially sound citing tax gains and higher treasury bond purchases in early 1940.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bank of France
Germany
France
Reynaud
Treasury
Britain Italy Trade Talks Suspended Over German Coal Seizures
Government officials said Britain Italy trade negotiations are suspended amid Rome reports that the Italian navy was ordered to seize shipments of German coal bound for Italy. The talks, ongoing for weeks, faced serious difficulties despite Britain allowing German coal imports to avoid inconvenience to Italy.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Britain
Italy
Rome
First Canadian Built Hurricane Arrives in Britain
The first Canadian built Hurricane fighter has arrived in England as part of a series to be delivered soon. Built to British specifications, it completed a test flight in Canada deemed satisfactory in every way. It is the first Canadian built Hurricane to reach Britain.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
England
Britain
Canada
Nelson damaged by mine in December frontline action
The Press Association said several Nelson crew members were injured when the battleship was holed by a mine in December. Winston Churchill told the House of Commons the Nelson was damaged by enemy action but provided no specifics.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Press Association
Nelson
Winton Churchill
House of Commons
Two German POWs Recaptured Near West Lothian
Two German sailors held as prisoners after escaping from an eastern Scotland internment camp were recaptured near West Lothian. The men were identified as sailors and were returned to custody following the pursuit.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Scotland
West Lothian
Graf Spee Hulk Sold to Argentine Scrap Firm
Montevideo reports Germany sold the hulk of the pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee to an Argentine metal concern for scrap. The deal marks the vessel’s final fate after its scuttling in 1939.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Montevideo
Germany
Admiral Graf Spee
Keynes Plan For War Savings Debated In Lords
Britain's plan to compel men and women to save a portion of earnings to fund the war is under study. J M Keynes explains a deferred pay scheme aimed at curbing inflation by restricting consumption and channeling savings to the government with postwar release. Lords and officials consider voluntary avenues first before granting compulsory powers.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Lori Hankey
House of Lords
J. M. Keynes
Lord Hankey
Keynes
Lord Stamp
Britain
Mr. Keynes
Plan to Ship BC Lumber to Britain via Hudson Bay Considered
Britain’s timber control board and Canadian railways weigh a plan to move British Columbia lumber to the United Kingdom by rail to Hudson Bay with transshipment on the Atlantic coast. Seaboard Lumber Sales Limited of Vancouver and H R MacMillan Export Company announce an order for 4,000,000 feet to be carried to the Atlantic coast for shipment to the UK.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ottawa
British Columbia
United Kingdom
Hudson Bay
Timber Control Board of Britain
Board of Transport Commissioners For Canada
Dominion
British Timber Board
Seaboard Lumber Sales Limited
Vancouver
H. R. MacMillan Export Company
Atlantic Coast
Arnfinn Collision Report Sees Submarine Sunk In North Sea
Survivors of the Norwegian ship Arnfinn recount a collision with a submarine in the North Sea. The submarine's periscope was torn off and the war vessel appeared to sink but was later pumped and reached the coast before the crew abandoned ship.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bergen
Norway
North Sea
Arnfinn
England
Roosevelt Named British Volunteer Commander for Finland
The Finnish aid bureau announced Kermit Roosevelt, son of Theodore Roosevelt, was appointed commander of British volunteers for Finland. He renounced U S citizenship last year and received a lieutenant’s commission in the British army with acting major rank. Soccer football gains popularity in Japan.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Kermit Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Finland
Roosevelt
Refugees in Hungary Face Peril As Police Cordons Guard Paris Legation
Budapest police acting under German pressure ringed the French legation where 40 Czecho-Slovak refugees hid and allegedly held French passports. Hundreds more face deportation to Germany amid Nazi pressure, with reports of beatings and starvation in Budapest citadel as cases strain Hungarian French relations.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Budapest
Bohemia and Moravia
Germany
Gestapo
Legation
Perre Guerlets
Hungary
France
Guerlets
Foreign Office
British flying boats for trans Atlantic service
London reports Captain Harold Balfour the under-secretary for air told the House of Commons that one of three 31 ton flying boats was damaged recently and another was returned to the makers for modification. He said they would be used when service starts in June.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Harold Balfour
Air
House of Commons
Britain
Reich Plan Offers Roumania Border Guarantees for Trade Shift
Authoritative quarters report Germany offered to guarantee Roumania borders in exchange for large increases in oil, wheat and raw material shipments to the Reich. The plan would push Roumania to halt civil mobilization, send most of its armed forces to work, and seek non aggression pacts with Hungary Bulgaria and Soviet Russia. Germany also proposed a railway accord to move supplies and urged regional cooperation while raising doubts in Bucharest over Nazi export control.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bucharest
Germany
Roumania
Reich
Roumanian
Hungary
Bulgaria
Soviet Russia
Turkey
Canada to buy all ACAN surplus for 1940 and 1941
The supply ministry announced purchase of the Aluminum Company of Canada full portable surplus for 1940 and 1941. The move aims to boost wartime aluminum output to approach Germany's level. The British Aluminum company’s 1940 output is also included in the purchase.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Supply Ministry
Aluminum Company of Canada
Canada
Germany
British Aluminum Company
California Floods Threaten Northern Farmlands and Cities
A three day rainstorm floods vast sections of northern and central California with swollen rivers inundating thousands of farm acres and city areas. High winds and slides block highways while officials consider a special session to address disaster relief. Governor Olson orders National Guardsmen to evacuate 70 families in Yolo County as the Sacramento River breaches its banks.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
San Francisco
California
C. Olson
Yolo County
Sacramento River
Swedish captains demand action to halt neutral shipping war
The Swedish association of merchant marine captains urged the government and other neutrals to end the war on shipping. The executive committee adopted a resolution condemning the destruction of neutral ships as they carry out lawful trade commitments.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Stockholm
Swedish Association of Merchant Marine Captains
Britain Reopens Talks On Pacific Contraband Bases
Britain has begun discussions with Canada on establishing contraband control bases on the Canadian west coast to curb traffic from the United States to Vladivostock. London also has resumed talks with Washington over US exports of rubber tin and copper to Vladivostock for the Soviet war effort amid calls for tighter blockades.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Britain
Canada
United States
Pacific
Vladivostock
Washington
House of Commons
Germany
Russia
Winston Churchill
Canadian
Hong Kong
Singapore
Fiji
Finland
Finns Pressed Back by Russian Assault Across Karelia
Russian offensive stretches into its fourth month as Finnish forces regroup along the Viipuri isthmus edge and resist encirclement. Civilian casualties rise with bombings hitting Savonlinna and other towns while Finland files two notes with the League of Nations accusing Russia of war violations.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Red Army
Savonlina
Viipuri
Kokonselka
Olay
Europe
Riihmaaki
Helsinki
Kuovala
Kajaani
Inkeroinen
Hamina
Turku
Gulf of Bothnia
Finland
League of Nations
Russia
United States Eyes Postwar World Order Talks
Cordell Hull, secretary of state, announced ongoing discussions with governments worldwide to prevent autarchy and totalitarianism after the war. He said copies of his statements on neutrals and a better world order had been sent to all U.S. representatives abroad to brief capitals, not tied to wartime conditions. Hull noted favorable initial reactions but did not reveal specific plans. he warned that without organized postwar economic and military adjustments, global forces of regimentation could spread. He also contrasted uses of apricot stones in Britain and Germany.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Washington
Cordell Hull
United States
Hull
U.S
Also Mentioned on This Page
Paris
Seld
Japan
Lord Baden-Powell
The
Boy Scouts
Abo
Turko
Baltic
Commons
Ronald Cross
Minster
Cross
Vladivostok
Mexico
Phillipines
Dutch East Indies
Helsiki
Viipuri Bay
Great Britain
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!